Nicolau Nasoni was an Italian artist and architect mostly active in Portugal. He became one of the most influential figures in Portuguese Baroque architecture with his original, vigorous and theatrical style of Baroque and Rococo architecture.

Nasoni moved to Porto in 1723, where he would remain all his life.

His first recorded works in Porto were on the walls of the Porto Cathedral in 1725. Here he introduced to Portugal the illusionist effects, called “quadratura”, typical for this period. He was given the assignment to redecorate and modernise this cathedral, still Romanesque at that time. He added the granite porch of the north facade and the loggia with the Azulejo.

In 1731 he designed the church and the spectacular granite tower of Clérigos in Porto. This would become his greatest work (1732–63) and the most significant and innovative architectural event in the renovation of Porto during the first half of the 18th century. Together with his other realizations, such as the facade of the Misericórdia Church, located in Rua das Flores, it would transform Porto into the most baroque of Portuguese cities.