Léon Dufourny
Léon Dufourny (5 March 1754, Paris – 16 November 1818, Paris) was a French Neoclassical architect. Biography His father, Jean-Baptiste, was a wealthy textile merchant. His older brother, , was originally involved in the family business, but later became a revolutionary. He studied architecture with Julien-David Le Roy. In 1782, attracted by classical architecture, he went to Italy to study the ancient monuments. After travelling throughout Northern Italy, he spent some time in Rome. From 1788 to 1793, he lived in Sicily, as a guest of the Kingdom of Naples. In Catania, he studied the reliefs at the Monastery of San Nicolò l'Arena. Arriving in Palermo in 1789, he immediately sought to make connections with the intelligentsia there. Soon, the Viceroy of Sicily, Francesco d'Aquino, Prince of Caramanico, was entrusting him with important commissions. This enabled him to introduce Neoclassical styles to an area that was dominated by the Baroque. Of particular note is the "Entrance Temple" for the new Botanical Gardens. It was the first building in Sicily in the Doric style, and began a trend. In 1793, he was forced to leave Sicily and sail for Livorno, due to a state of hostility between the Kingdom of Naples