Even before the First World War, the Italians were thinking of restoring the Roman Empire. In the 1920s, this romantic and distant idea turned into a nightmare set in motion by the leader, the Duce. For its part, the port city of Genoa was to become Europe’s most important port, and its architecture was intended to emphasise the power of ‘reborn Rome’. For this reason, the architect Marcello Piacentini, inspired by New York’s skyscrapers, designed what was then Europe’s tallest building in Genoa. However, the Torre Piacentini is not an Art Deco or Neo-Gothic colossus; its architecture is a blend of tradition and modernity. After all, this is precisely what Fascist Italy was meant to be – a modern Roman Empire.
The colonial race
Born in 1881, Marcello Piacentini grew up in the newly formed Italian state. At that time, artists, politicians and architects were striving to create a national style that would reunite Italy’s diverse and distant regions. It was precisely the idea of recreating the Roman Empire that was intended to unite all Italians, and monumental architecture was ideally suited to symbolically showcasing the reborn spirit of the empire.
The reborn empire had to catch up with its neighbours in the colonial race. For this reason, the Italians set out to conquer the former Roman territories, primarily Libya. Although the military campaign in Libya proved to be a disgrace, the Italians quickly set about creating modern national infrastructure in Cyrenaica. It was in North Africa that Piacentini designed the first colonial buildings of the reborn Italy.
It is worth noting, however, that before Libya, Piacentini travelled extensively throughout Europe and studied the popular styles that emerged at the beginning of the 20th century. His designs were based on Italian Neoclassicism and monumentalism, but as his travels continued, the architect began to recognise more modern approaches to design.
The Grand Tour
In 1915, the architect travelled to San Francisco for the World’s Fair. In fact, Piacentini was sent to California to design several structures for the Italian pavilion. He created buildings that resembled traditional Italian rural architecture but in a modern form. However, the trip to America proved more significant for his future career than the exhibition itself. Piacentini visited the major cities of the USA, including Chicago, New York and Buffalo. The massive skyscrapers of the Chicago School made a huge impression on him.
His fascination with the emerging Italian national style found support within the ranks of the Fascist Party. Moreover, Benito Mussolini regarded Piacentini as a genius of urban planning and architecture, which is why the architect assumed the informal role of chief state architect. Piacentini believed that architecture (like everything else) should serve the nation through symbolism and function. In the 1920s, he combined modernist forms with classical ornamentation, Renaissance proportions and rich symbolism.
In the 1930s, Piacentini’s architecture underwent a further evolution. During his trip to Germany at the start of the decade, the architect noted many positive features of the Bauhaus style. Although the non-historical nature of this style put him off somewhat, he began to be impressed by the Bauhaus’s functionalism, its use of modern solutions and the absence of excessive ornamentation. Piacentini also appreciated the rational urban planning of German cities. The architect wanted open spaces, wide streets and monumental buildings to find their way into his homeland as well.
From these inspirations, a new form of Italian rationalism emerged, which eventually swept across the entire country. Courts, party headquarters, railway stations and theatres were intended to showcase the nation’s power. Piacentini’s style eventually evolved into the Stile Littorio, a blend of simplified classicism, rationalism and monumentalism. However, this austere and geometric style continued to emphasise the strength of the state and its history.
New York
One of the most interesting examples of Piacentini’s urban planning experiments is the new centre of Genoa. Piazza Dante was built on the ruins of centuries-old houses in the mid-1930s. Mussolini’s regime believed that buildings from the Roman era were of the highest value, whilst those from the medieval and Renaissance periods were merely an inferior accretion on a fallen empire. This is why the authorities so readily agreed to the demolition of historic neighbourhoods. In the case of Genoa, the medieval buildings were replaced by the monumental architecture of ‘New Rome’.
A large, open square was surrounded by rationalist buildings that soared to a height of several dozen metres. Moreover, the Torre Piacentini, rising to 108 metres, became the tallest skyscraper in Europe. The skyscraper was built using modern construction technologies, including, of course, reinforced concrete. Opened in 1940, the building impressed with its high-speed lifts and modern HVAC systems (heating, ventilation and air conditioning).
The authorities in Genoa were delighted with their massive skyscraper, as plans to transform the city into the ‘Italian New York’ had been drawn up even before the First World War. Although Piazza Dante is a minuscule fraction of Manhattan, it must be said that it stands out for its modernity against the backdrop of the historic buildings. Piacentini did not, however, want the building to resemble an American skyscraper situated in Genoa. For this reason, the skyscraper’s façade consists of alternating layers of clinker brick and marble. A similar pattern can be seen on the city’s cathedral.
Propaganda architecture
The building’s heavy, austere form has been embellished with bas-reliefs and mosaics. On the façade, there is a bas-relief depicting Genoa’s most famous son – Christopher Columbus. On the other side of the façade, the artist commemorated Balila – a boy who, according to legend, is said to have led an uprising against the Habsburgs in Genoa. At the centre of the mosaic are propagandistic depictions of families, workers and the authorities.
The stepped structure, reminiscent of New York’s Rockefeller Centre, is crowned by a large clock tower. The imposing building stands opposite the lower Torre Dante 2, whilst the other buildings are considerably shorter than the two skyscrapers. In this way, the skyscrapers form a gateway to modern Italy, whilst the gradually lowering buildings lead to the medieval city gates.
The Torre Piacentini remained Europe’s tallest building until 1952, and two years later it lost its title as Italy’s tallest skyscraper to the Torre Breda in Milan. Nevertheless, the building continues to impress with its monumental scale. It is worth remembering, however, that the idea behind its construction led to the tragedy of the Second World War. Torre Piacentini is not merely an impressive feat of engineering, but a stark reminder of the totalitarianism that claimed millions of lives.
All of Piacentini’s architecture from the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s served a propaganda purpose, and the architect sincerely believed in Mussolini’s ideas. Piacentini’s German counterpart was Albert Speer, who was sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment for his involvement in the criminal regime. It is worth noting, however, that, in addition to architecture and urban planning, Speer was also involved in the exploitation of slave labour by prisoners of the Third Reich. Piacentini, on the other hand, had to contend only with being forcibly barred from practising his profession after the war. Interestingly, after a few years, Mussolini’s former architect returned to work and continued to design until his death in 1960.
Source: Guida Genova
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