Armando Brasini (

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, 21 September 1879 - Rome, 18 February 1965) was a prominent Italian architect and urban designer of the early twentieth century and exemplar of

Fascist architecture Fascist architecture encompasses various stylistic trends in architecture developed by architects of fascist states, primarily in the early 20th century. Fascist architectural styles gained popularity in the late 1920s with the ri ...

. His work is notable for its eclectic and visionary style inspired by

Ancient Roman architecture Ancient Roman architecture adopted the external language of classical ancient Greek architecture for the purposes of the ancient Romans, but was different from Greek buildings, becoming a new architectural style. The two styles are often consi ...

Italian Baroque architecture Italian Baroque architecture refers to Baroque architecture in Italy. Introduction The Baroque architecture period began in Italy during the late-16th century. It originated during the Counter-Reformation, which was mainly headed by the Catholi ...

and

Giovanni Battista Piranesi Giovanni Battista (or Giambattista) Piranesi (; also known as simply Piranesi; 4 October 1720 – 9 November 1778) was an Italian classical archaeologist, architect, and artist, famous for his etchings of Rome and of fictitious and atmospheric " ...

Biography

Armando Stefano Ludovico Brasini was born in the Roman district of Tor di Nona from a family of modest background, the son of Augusto Brasini and Rosa Piersigilli. After having successfully attended the

Institute of Fine Arts An institute is an organizational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes ca ...

, he started specializing in renovation of old buildings and interior decoration. In 1897-1898 he worked with on the renovation of the Castello Orsini-Odescalchi in

Bracciano Bracciano is a small town in the Italian region of Lazio, northwest of Rome. The town is famous for its volcanic lake (Lake Bracciano, Lago di Bracciano or "Sabatino", the eighth largest lake in Italy) and for a particularly well-preserved medie ...

for its owner, Prince . In the early 1900s he worked on the decoration of the Roman churches of Santa Teresa and San Camillo de Lellis, both with , and on stucco work in . In 1912, he teamed with

Marcello Piacentini Marcello Piacentini (8 December 188119 May 1960) was an Italian people, Italian urban theorist and one of the main proponents of Italian Fascist architecture. Biography Early career Born in Rome, he was the son of architect Pio Piacentini. He ...

for the winning entry in a competition for the remodeling of

Piazza Navona Piazza Navona () is a public open space in Rome, Italy. It is built on the site of the 1st century AD Stadium of Domitian and follows the form of the open space of the stadium in an elongated oval. The ancient Romans went there to watch the '' a ...

, which was, however, not implemented. In those years he operated from a spacious office in in the center of Rome. In 1917 he created stucco decoration in the

Palazzo Chigi The Chigi Palace ( ) is a palace and former noble residence in Rome which is the seat of the Council of Ministers and the official residence of the Prime Minister of Italy. It is located in the Piazza Colonna, next to Palazzo Montecitorio, s ...

following its purchase by the Italian state. Immediately after

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he proposed a colossal memorial to the Battle of Vittorio Veneto, featured a cascade flanked by giant statues, that would have been carved on the nearby Pizzocco mountain. In the early 1920s he worked with Giuseppe Volpi, then Governor of

Tripolitania Tripolitania (), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province of Libya. The region had been settled since antiquity, first coming to prominence as part of the Carthaginian empire. Following the defeat ...

, on the remodeling of Tripoli. There he designed the Savings Bank Building (, now the country's central bank), the waterfront boulevard (, now ''Ad-dahra Al-kebira''), the renovation of the Red Castle, and the memorial to the Italian conquest (). In 1925-1926, he also produced the first master plan for the expansion of

Tirana Tirana ( , ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in Albania, largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills, with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest ov ...

, where Italian influence was significant at the time. That plan was partly implemented, and elements of Brasini's design still exist in the layout of

Skanderbeg Square The Skanderbeg Square () is the main plaza in the centre of Tirana, Albania. The square is named after the Albanian national hero Skanderbeg, Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu. The total area is about 40,000 square metres. The Skanderbeg Monument dom ...

and in the city's major north–south axis, now

Dëshmorët e Kombit Boulevard The Dëshmorët e Kombit Boulevard () is a major thoroughfare in Tirana, Albania. It was initially designed by Armando Brasini in 1925. Brasini's master plan was later amended by Florestano di Fausto, and in 1939 by Gherardo Bosio following t ...

. In 1929 he was appointed a member of the newly created

Royal Academy of Italy The Royal Academy of Italy () was a short-lived Italian academy of the Italian Fascism, Fascist period. It was created on 7 January 1926 by royal decree,See reference . but was not inaugurated until 28 October 1929. It was effectively dissolved in ...

. Brasini also designed sets and costumes for silent movies, including '' Theodora'' (1921) and '' Quo Vadis'' (1924). Brasini had a lifelong interest in

urban design Urban design is an approach to the design of buildings and the spaces between them that focuses on specific design processes and outcomes based on geographical location. In addition to designing and shaping the physical features of towns, city, ...

. In 1925–27, he conceived a project for a remodeling of Rome's center dubbed the "Mussolini Forum" () which would have entailed the demolition of much of the

Campo Marzio Campo Marzio () is the 4th of Rome, Italy, identified by the initials R. IV. It belongs to the Municipio I and covers a smaller section of the area of the ancient Campus Martius. The logo of this rione is a silver crescent on a blue background. ...

, leaving the ancient monuments ( Pantheon,

Column of Marcus Aurelius The Column of Marcus Aurelius (, ) is a Roman victory column located in Piazza Colonna, Rome, Italy. A Doric column adorned with a detailed spiral relief, it was built in honor of Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius and modeled after Trajan's Colu ...

Obelisk of Montecitorio The Obelisk of Montecitorio (), also known as Solare, is an ancient Egyptian, red granite obelisk of Psamtik II (595–589 BC) from Heliopolis. Brought to Rome with the Flaminio Obelisk in 10 BC by the Roman Emperor Augustus to be used as the ...

) standing alone in large urban spaces. Brasini's emphasis on facilitating car traffic at the cost of the old city fabric has elicited comparisons with

Le Corbusier Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (6 October 188727 August 1965), known as Le Corbusier ( , ; ), was a Swiss-French architectural designer, painter, urban planner and writer, who was one of the pioneers of what is now regarded as modern architecture ...

's 1925 Plan Voisin for Paris, despite the obvious stylistic difference. In 1927, he was commissioned by the Ministry of Public Education to design a master plan for the Flaminio neighborhood, on which he had already worked in 1915. In 1931, he participated in the committee for a new city plan of Rome (), and in 1934 he was a member of the jury for the project that would have faced the

Basilica of Maxentius The Basilica of Maxentius (), sometimes known by its original Latin name, Basilica Nova or, less commonly, the Basilica of Constantine (Italian: ''Basilica Constantini''), was a civic basilica in the Roman Forum. At the time of its construction, ...

across the (now

Via dei Fori Imperiali The Via dei Fori Imperiali (formerly ''Via dei Monti'', then ''Via dell'Impero'') is a road in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, that is in a straight line from the Piazza Venezia to the Colosseum. Its course takes it over parts of the For ...

). His prestige projects in Rome included, in the 1920s, the church of the Sacred Heart of Mary in

Parioli Parioli () is the 2nd of Rome, identified by the initials Q. II. The toponym is also used to indicate the urbanistic area 2B of the . The name comes from Monti Parioli, a series of tufa hills, and was given to the area before its incorporatio ...

and the sprawling on Via di Bravetta, and in the 1930s, the seat of

Istituto nazionale per l'assicurazione contro gli infortuni sul lavoro The ('National Institute for Insurance against Accidents at Work'), or INAIL, is an Italian statutory corporation overseen by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies. Its headquarters is in the INAIL Tower in the EUR, Rome. History Estab ...

buttressing

Quirinal Hill The Quirinal Hill (; ; ) is one of the Seven Hills of Rome, at the north-east of the city center. It is the location of the official residence of the Italian head of state, who resides in the Quirinal Palace; by metonymy "the Quirinal" has c ...

, as well as the Ponte Flaminio. He also designed major public buildings in Southern Italy: the in

Foggia Foggia (, ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere delle Puglie, Tavoliere, also know ...

(built between 1928 and 1932), and the massive in

Taranto Taranto (; ; previously called Tarent in English) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Taranto, serving as an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base. Founded by Spartans ...

(built from 1930 to 1934). Brasini produced designs for a number of major projects that were never built. In 1931 he participated in the competition for the

Palace of the Soviets The Palace of the Soviets () was a project to construct a political convention center in Moscow on the site of the demolished Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. The main function of the palace was to house sessions of the Supreme Soviet in its ...

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

. In the 1930s he produced various designs for a colossal in Rome, intended to celebrate Mussolini's imperial achievements and match

Albert Speer Berthold Konrad Hermann Albert Speer (; ; 19 March 1905 – 1 September 1981) was a German architect who served as Reich Ministry of Armaments and War Production, Minister of Armaments and War Production in Nazi Germany during most of W ...

's plans for Nazi Berlin. Mussolini did not approve the project, however, due to its high costs and competing projects of

EUR The euro (symbol: €; currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the euro area or, more commonly, the eurozone. The euro is divided into 10 ...

. In 1939 he designed a new cathedral for

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; ,) is the capital city of Ethiopia, as well as the regional state of Oromia. With an estimated population of 2,739,551 inhabitants as of the 2007 census, it is the largest city in the country and the List of cities in Africa b ...

, and in 1956 a colossal lighthouse intended as a monument to Christianity in the

Saxa Rubra Saxa Rubra was a village and station on the Roman Flaminian Way, from Rome, Italy. It is now the name of a neighborhood north of Rome and of the city's Roma Nord railway station. Situated on the modern Via Flaminia it is also the site of a major ...

neighborhood of Rome. For the EUR, Brasini in 1938 designed a monumental Forestry Institute named after

Alessandro Mussolini Alessandro Mussolini (11 November 1854 – 19 November 1910) was the father of Italian Fascist founder and leader Benito Mussolini, the father of Arnaldo and Edvige Mussolini, the father-in-law of Rachele Mussolini, and the paternal grand ...

, Benito's father, whose construction started in 1940 but was suspended in 1942 for war reasons. The partly built structure was demolished in 1957 and replaced by the General House of the

Marist Brothers The Marist Brothers of the Schools, commonly known as simply the Marist Brothers, is an international community of Catholic Church, Catholic religious institute of Religious brother, brothers. In 1817, Marcellin Champagnat, a Marist priest from Fr ...

, in spite of Brasini's attempts to promote alternative design options to save the construction. Following

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Brasini no longer received major commissions in Italy, but he remained involved in the completion of some of his projects, such as the Ponte Flaminio and the Parioli basilica. He produced plans for the city of

Riyadh Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...

and a royal palace there, at the invitation of the government of

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

(1954), and for a

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

over the

Strait of Messina The Strait of Messina (; ) is a narrow strait between the eastern tip of Sicily (Punta del Faro) and the western tip of Calabria (Punta Pezzo) in Southern Italy. It connects the Tyrrhenian Sea to the north with the Ionian Sea to the south, with ...

(1956-1963). He died in 1965 in the house he had designed for himself on Via Flaminia.

Assessment

Paolo Portoghesi Paolo Portoghesi (2 November 1931 – 30 May 2023) was an Italian architect, theorist, historian, and professor of architecture at the Sapienza University of Rome. He was president of the architectural section of the Venice Biennale (1979–1992) ...

, while acknowledging the "undoubted architectural merits" of Brasini's designs, defines him as "one of the great misfits of twentieth-century architecture" for generally not being "in tune with the spirit of the times," but rather representing "a case of estrangement from that spirit."

Works

* Villa Toeplitz in

Varese Varese ( , ; or ; ; ; archaic ) is a city and ''comune'' in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, north-west of Milan. The population of Varese in 2018 was 80,559. It is the capital of the Province of Varese. The hinterland or exurban part ...

(1901) * Monumental entrance to the

Zoological Garden A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility where animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for Conservation biology, conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden ...

in Rome (1909-1911) * Villino Tabacchi, Rome (1912), demolished * Villa Flaminia (Via Flaminia 495), part of the Villa Brasini complex (1920-1925) * Headquarters of the Savings Bank of Tripolitania, Tripoli (1921-1935), now

Central Bank of Libya The Central Bank of Libya (CBL) is the monetary authority in Libya. It has the status of an autonomous corporate body. The law establishing the CBL stipulates that the objectives of the central bank shall be to maintain monetary stability in Liby ...

* Renovation of the

Red Castle of Tripoli The Red Castle, in Arabic As-saraya Al-hamra (), sometimes also Red Fort or Red Saraya, is a major landmark on the waterfront of Tripoli, Libya, Tripoli, bordering Martyrs' Square, Tripoli, Martyrs' Square. It has been the home of the Red Castle ...

(1922-1923) * Waterfront boulevard, now Al-dahra Al-kabira in Tripoli (1922-24) * War monument in Tripoli (1922-1925), demolished in the 1950s * Church of the

Sacred Heart of Mary The Immaculate Heart of Mary () is a Catholic devotion which refers to the view of the interior life of Mary, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections, and, above all, her virginal love for God the Father, her maternal love for h ...

(also known as the Parioli Basilica) in Rome (1923-1954) * Italian Pavilion at the Decorative Arts Exhibition in Paris (1925), demolished after the event * Central Museum of the

Risorgimento The unification of Italy ( ), also known as the Risorgimento (; ), was the 19th century political and social movement that in 1861 ended in the annexation of various states of the Italian peninsula and its outlying isles to the Kingdom of ...

inside the

Victor Emmanuel II Monument The Victor Emmanuel II National Monument (), also known as the Vittoriano or for synecdoche Altare della Patria ("Altar of the Fatherland"), is a large national monument built between 1885 and 1935 to honour Victor Emmanuel II, the first king ...

, Rome (with A. Calzavara, 1924–1935) * Master plan for the Center of

(1925), partly implemented and modified by

Gherardo Bosio Gherardo Bosio (19 March 1903 – 16 April 1941) was an Italian architect, engineer and urbanist, famed for his work in planning the centre of Tirana, the capital of Albania.http://www.shqiptariiitalise.com/shqiperi-itali/shqiperi-itali/shqiper ...

after 1939 * , now near Naples (1925-1930), partly destroyed during

* Villa Manzoni on via Cassia in Rome (1928) *

INAIL The ('National Institute for Insurance against Accidents at Work'), or INAIL, is an Italian statutory corporation overseen by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies. Its headquarters is in the INAIL Tower in the EUR, Rome. History Establ ...

building, Via IV Novembre in Rome (with Guido Zevi, 1928–1932) * in Foggia, now City Hall (1928-1933) * , now seat of the

Province of Taranto The province of Taranto (; Tarantino: ; Salentino: ), previously known as the province of the Ionian, is a province in the Apulia region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Taranto. It has an area of , and a total population of 581,092 (2017). ...

(1929-1934) * in Rome (1929-1934) * Italian Pavilion at the

Paris Colonial Exposition The Paris Colonial Exhibition (or "''Exposition coloniale internationale''", International Colonial Exhibition) was a six-month colonial exhibition held in Paris, France, in 1931 that attempted to display the diverse cultures and immense resour ...

(1931), a smaller-scale reinterpretation of the Severan Basilica in

Leptis Magna Leptis or Lepcis Magna, also known by #Names, other names in classical antiquity, antiquity, was a prominent city of the Carthaginian Empire and Roman Libya at the mouth of the Wadi Lebda in the Mediterranean. Established as a Punic people, Puni ...

, demolished after the event's end * Villa Augusta (Via Flaminia 489), also known as the ("ugly castle") for its eclectic style, part of the Villa Brasini complex (1932-35) * in Naples (1933-38) * Ponte Flaminio in Rome (1939-51)

Gallery

File:Ingresso bioparco 2.JPG, Zoological Garden entrance, Rome File:Tripoli22.JPG, Lungomare Conte Volpi, Tripoli File:Libia-Tripoli-1935-monumento-ai-Caduti.jpg, Monument to the Fallen, Tripoli File:Tripoli, Castello.jpg, Tripoli Castle following its renovation by Brasini File:Central Bank of Libya.jpg, Savings Bank building, Tripoli File:L'exposition des arts décoratifs, Pavillon de l'Italie.jpg, Italian Pavilion at the Paris Arts Décoratifs Exhibition, 1925 File:Expo 1931 Italie.jpg, Italian Pavilion at the Paris Colonial Exhibition, 1931 File:Museo Centrale del Risorgimento din Roma.jpg, Museo Centrale del Risorgimento, Rome File:Trevi - palazzo inail e giardino Colonna alla Pilotta 1210267.JPG, INAIL Building, Rome File:Palazzo del Comune di Foggia.jpg, City Hall, Foggia File:Palazzo del governo - Taranto.jpg, Palazzo del governo, Taranto File:Napoli - palazzo della Banca Nazionale del Lavoro.jpg, Banca Nazionale del Lavoro, Naples File:Basilica del Sacro Cuore di Maria.jpg, Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Mary in Parioli, Rome File:Ponte Flaminio.jpg, Ponte Flaminio, Rome File:Pontefla1.jpg, Ponte Flaminio, detail of decoration

Honors

* Member of the

, 1929 * Knight of the Grand Cross of the

Order of the Crown of Italy The Order of the Crown of Italy ( or OCI) was founded as a national order in 1868 by King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy, Vittorio Emanuele II, to commemorate Italian unification, the unification of Italy in 1861. It was awarded in five degrees for ...

* Knight of Magistral Grace of the

Sovereign Military Order of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta, and commonly known as the Order of Malta or the Knights of Malta, is a Catholic lay religious ...

Notes

External links

Archives of Armando Brasini
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brasini, Armando 20th-century Italian architects Italian fascist architecture