Ernesto Basile

Ernesto Basile (1857-1932), an Italian architect of Modernism and Art Nouveau, continued his father's legacy by completing the Teatro Massimo in Palermo. He collaborated with artists such as Ettore De Maria Bergler and Vittorio Ducrot, contributing to the Palermitan Liberty movement. He designed public buildings, villas, and works in Palermo, Rome, and other locations in southern Italy. His career took off with the pavilions of the National Exhibition of Palermo in 1899. A pioneer in avant-garde design, he led ministerial commissions for the restoration control of monuments. He was buried in Palermo at the Cemetery dei Rotoli.