Church of Santa Maria del Rosario

The little church of the Madonna del Rosario is a small construction with a gabled roof, built at the wishes of Enrico Mattei at the time of the most significant development of the petrochemical plant of Porto Marghera. Mattei had more than one church built for ENI inside the most dehumanising industrial areas, partly out of devotion and partly to favour contact and provide an environment for the community of workers. This one is particularly touching in its simplicity and modesty. It is positioned on the edge of Viale della Libertà on the corner with Via Pacinotti, in the outskirts of Porto Marghera, paradoxically towards the entrance to the lagoon and Ponte della Libertà leading to Venice. The entrance door leads directly to the pavement with just two steps, which very discreetly attempt to communicate that this is not a warehouse but a place of worship. In reality, the façade facing the street has its own personality, with inlaid grès stoneware imitation brick tiles that underline the most significant architectural elements, the front door, the rose window, the tympanum of the roof and a band that frames the lower part of the frontage, a kind of plinth that raises the pediment. The other façades are extremely simple, with just three tall windows each, which at the top bring a little light into the interior. The altar is positioned at the back against a dark, closed, bare wall.
With the project by AMDL CIRCLE, the church has one more window, right above the altar, behind a small statue of the virgin. From the window you can see outside, towards a meadow, recently planted with trees, a corner of Porto Marghera returned to nature, to decoration, to the beauty of our civilisation. In the middle there is a cross. From inside it is framed perfectly, and from the prayer benches you turn your gaze beyond the altar, beyond the walls, outside, towards the world.