Mosaics to the Limit!

The entrance to this curious residence

There is a town exactly halfway between Padua and Venice called Dolo. It's mostly famous for its prime location along the Brenta river, which boasts some of the most beautiful Veneto villas such as Malcontenta and Villa Pisani. Yet tucked away and on the other side of the Brenta, I have come across a different kind of fantastic home. It's superlative in another way: for its mosaic work.

At Via Brenta Bassa 43, a man has toiled his whole life to cover the inside and outside of his house with tiles, mosaics, and odd and even kitsch sculptures. Here is a glimpse of the fruits of his labor.

Street view

Detail of mosaics and sculptures

The American Dream of an Italian House?

Would you like me to say I bought this as my house? It's a very old historic Italian villa over the water. In fact, this is the not-very-famous Piovego river. Reading other blogs and listening to many American experiences in Italy, I feel like I should be living a dream of buying property like this. But who can afford a monstrosity like this with an honest Italian salary, I ask? In fact, the Americans who buy fantastic property are either independently wealthy, have been paid well for many years by an American company and are probably retired, or have chosen to buy in the small towns in the countryside of the south, where most Italians are not interested in purchasing because there is no industry or nightlife therefore prices are kept low.

I didn't move into this house. I only drive by it everyday on my way home from work. This picture was taken close to sunset.

No one seems to live here or even do events in this villa, a typical use for majestic old villas in these parts. I need to find out some more information about it, but it sure looks fantastic in its romantic aura of decay and history, along this extension of the Riviera del Brenta, bordering Padua.