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Brutalist Italy

Concrete architecture from the Alps to the Mediterranean Sea
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( 24 ratings, 3 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Brutalist Italy showcases over 140 exclusive photographs documenting the country's unique Brutalist architecture, from private homes and churches to football stadia and cemeteries, spanning every Italian region. Roberto Conte and Stefano Perego spent five years travelling extensively to capture these monumental concrete structures, revealing how Italian architects after World War II embraced Brutalism as a means to move beyond fascism yet retain modernism, blending traditional materials with historical references. This dual-language volume explores iconic sites like Le Vele di Scampia and the Our Lady of Tears Sanctuary, presenting Italy's distinctive architectural identity through this minimalist, raw aesthetic.
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Format: Hardback
$6599
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

Brutalist Italy is ideal for enthusiasts of architecture and design, especially those interested in Brutalism, Italian culture, and post-war history. Photographers, historians, and students of urban studies will also find the detailed and exclusive imagery invaluable.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Containing over 140 exclusive photographs - ranging from private homes to football stadia - across every region of the country, Brutalist Italy is the first publication to focus entirely on this subject.

Best books of 2023 (Architecture and Design) - Financial Times

'Brutalist Italian architecture enthusiasts and concrete completists will be spoilt for choice by Roberto Conte and Stefano Perego's pictorial tour.' - Wallpaper*

What makes Italian Brutalist buildings different to their counterparts in other countries? Containing over 140 exclusive photographs - ranging from private homes to churches and cemeteries via football stadia - across every region of the country, Brutalist Italy is the first publication to focus entirely on this subject.

Architectural photographers Roberto Conte and Stefano Perego (authors of Soviet Asia) have spent the past five years travelling over 20,000 kilometres documenting the monumental concrete structures of their native country.

Brutalism - with its minimalist aesthetic, favouring raw materials and structural elements over decorative design - has a complex relationship with Italian history. After World War II, Italian architects were keen to distance themselves from fascism, without rejecting the architectural modernism that had flourished during that era. They developed a form of contemporary architecture that engaged with traditional methods and materials, drawing on uncontaminated historical references. This plurality of pasts assimilated into new constructions is a recurring feature of the country's Brutalist buildings, imparting to them a unique identity.

From the imposing social housing of Le Vele di Scampia to the celestial Our Lady of Tears Sanctuary, Syracuse - Brutalist Italy collects the most compelling examples of this extraordinary architecture for the first time in a single volume.

The book is dual language, with texts in both English and Italian.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Elizabeth Short of Morning Star praises the book for revealing how Italian architects embraced concrete’s contradictions and layered history in their designs. Edwin Heathcote from Financial Times: How To Spend It notes the inventiveness of the buildings featured and their departure from the classical legacy of fascism. Jonathan Bell at Wallpaper* describes it as a rich collection of concrete marvels, recommending readers to experience the full visual impact by owning the book.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781739887834

Publisher: FUEL Publishing

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 07 September 2023

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: FUEL Publishing

Illustration: 153 Illustrations

Contributors:

  • Edited by Damon Murray
  • Edited by Stephen Sorrell
  • Text by Adrian Forty
  • Edited by Damon Murray
  • Edited by Stephen Sorrell

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 230.0mm

Height: 160.0mm

Weight: 640g

Pages: 200

About the Author

Roberto Conte (1980) began taking photographs in 2006. Today he works closely with architectural practices, artists and designers, specialising in documenting buildings of the 20th century - ranging from avant-garde and rationalist structures to post-war modernism, brutalism and contemporary architecture.

Stefano Perego (1984) began photographing the industrial ruins of Milan in 2006 and has since documented hundreds of abandoned sites across Europe. After visiting the former Yugoslavia, he decided to concentrate on the modernist and brutalist architecture of former socialist countries.

Adrian Forty is Emeritus Professor of the History of Architecture - The Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London

EDITORS: Damon Murray and Stephen Sorrell have been publishing critically acclaimed books on design and architecture since 2004.

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