Mario Cereghini, Church of the Redeemer and of St. Catherine of the Airoldi and Muzzi Institute for the Elderly, Via Airoldi e Muzzi, 2 (in the town centre, recognisable from the context) - Germanedo, Lecco 1937-1939
Surrounded by the greenery of the natural slope in which it is set, the church stands out from its surroundings as a curvilinear block with a few openings to break up the simple elevations covered in white plaster. Its unconventional shape for a religious building, provoked some criticism, and it was consecrated only three years after its construction and dedicated in 1942 to the Redeemer and to St. Catherine of Siena. From the outside it is recognisable thanks to the almost metaphysical bell tower, juxtaposed to the main body made up of two horizontal blocks stacked one on top of the other. The planimetric layout, characterised by two straight lines connected by a curvilinear segment at the entrance is repeated on the lower and upper levels, which are smaller. On the outside, the elevations differ in the number and rhythm of the openings. The distribution of the two levels reflects the internal articulation, with two lateral women's galleries raised above the main nave. The use of curved lines alternating with straight lines and the scanning of the openings and the different levels generates a planivolumetric dynamism which allows interesting play of light and shadow inside. The purity of the lines is only interrupted by the fresco decoration that runs for 20 meters on the curved wall and is the work of the painter Ennio Morlotti, who portrays himself and Mario Cereghini among others.
