This architect from Lugano trained at both the Accademia di Brera in Milan and the Regia Università di Pavia, moving in 1807 to Rome to complete his studies. In 1811, he worked with architect Giuseppe Valadier on a survey of the Colosseum and on the design for Piazza del Popolo in Rome, in the process making several archaeological finds. In 1814, Pope Pius VII appointed him “director of the antiquities and embellishments of Rome” and, from 1816, he received various commissions at the Bourbon court. Indeed, Ferdinand I appointed him to design the Church of San Francesco di Paola and to perform other works on the Real Palazzo degli Studi (now the Naples archaeological museum), the Royal Palace in Naples and the Royal Palace in Caserta, in particular to complete the decoration of the Throne Room.