The finest works by architect Marcello Piacentini

The works of Marcello Piacentini, one of the greatest architects of the 20th century, are characterised by a timeless classicism. His monumental and rational neoclassical works have left their mark on Rome and many other Italian cities during the twenty years of fascism, and even beyond.

After having explored the most beautiful works of Renzo Piano, let’s take a look at those of a man who at the time had the reputation of being the ‘Duce’s architect’ or ‘court architect’, as well as an ideologist of monumentalism.

Piacentini is known for having co-authored one of the most controversial works of all time: the demolition of the ‘Spina di Borgo’, which served to pave the way for military parades along Via della Conciliazione, at the foot of the Vatican.

Who was he?

Despite the nickname, Piacentini’s career transcended his experience with the Fascist period. Born in Rome in 1881, he trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in the capital, and then perfected his skills in France and Germany.

He began his career at a young age, designing a number of Art Nouveau buildings, such as Villino Florio in 1903. But Marcello, the son of Pio Piacentini, is best remembered for two periods that left their mark on the history of Italian architecture: the fascist period, and the post-fascist period.

His works, often monumental and grandiose, have contributed to defining the face of many Italian cities, not only Rome. His monumental classicism was necessary for the regime because it had to translate its ideology into buildings and works that still fascinate or divide public opinion today. Partly because they left indelible traces of that period, and partly because of the technique and the formal and metaphysical style that was so fashionable in those years.

His legacy is still the subject of debate, particularly the demolition of the mediaeval village ‘Spina di Borgo’ to make way for the current Via della Conciliazione, designed together with Attilio Spaccarelli.

The buildings that were demolished were located between Castel Sant’Angelo and St Peter’s Square. They were crossed by a labyrinth of narrow streets that were designed to lead visitors to the grandeur of St Peter’s Square, with Michelangelo’s majestic dome.

The surprise effect was thus distorted to make way for the Fascist parades that were to march along the newly-built Via della Conciliazione. But there are other works that characterise many large Italian cities.

Marcello Piacentini’s most beautiful works

Piacentini’s real success came in the 1920s, with the advent of fascism in Italy. He became the regime’s trusted architect, in charge of creating works that celebrated the alleged power and monumentality of fascist Italy.

Among his most important works from this period, in chronological order of inauguration, are the following buildings and complexes:

The headquarters of the National Association of War Disabled and Invalids in Rome (1928)

An emblem of classical style and monumentalism, located in the Prati district. The building has a square plan and a neoclassical façade with a pronaos of six Doric columns and a triangular tympanum, clear references to classical antiquity.

The Basilica of Christ the King in Rome (1931)

A monumental church located in the Prati district, with a central plan, a large dome and a bell tower that rises to a height of 70 metres.

Foro Mussolini (1932) – today Foro Italico

A monumental complex that included Termini Station, the EUR and Via dei Fori Imperiali. Foro Mussolini was a monumental sports complex that was intended to symbolise the greatness of the fascist regime.

The Post Office Building in Piacenza (1932)

An imposing neoclassical building with a quadrangular plan and five floors. The main façade is characterised by a pronaos with six Doric columns and a triangular tympanum.

Piazza della Vittoria in Brescia (1932)

Built in the city’s historic centre, it has a rectangular plan and is dominated by the Palazzo delle Poste (Post Office Building), a monumental building in rationalist style.

The porticoes have large windows and reinforced concrete pillars. This work is a triumph of classicism and modernity. The square has been used as a film set in several films, including ‘Il giardino dei Finzi-Contini’ by Vittorio De Sica.

The University City in Rome (1935)

University campus in the Tiburtino district of Rome. A complex of simple monumental classicism inspired by the models of Roman antiquity, with grandiose and symmetrical buildings, characterised by arcades, colonnades and large squares.

The Palace of Justice in Milan (1940)

An austere and solemn building that represents the power of the law. It was built in a hybrid style, between rationalism and monumentality. The façade, and the imposing staircase, became the media symbols of the Tangentopoli period in the 1990s.

The Piacentini Tower in Genoa (1940)

Also known as the Genoa Skyscraper, this 31-storey building in the city centre is in a rational, classical style. At the time of its construction it was the tallest building in Italy and the second tallest in Europe.

The post-fascist works of Marcello Piacentini

Despite his collaboration with the Mussolini regime, Piacentini continued his work even after the Second World War.

During that period, his formal, harsh and monumental style was sublimated towards a more moderate, sober and functional classicism.

Among his most significant post-war works are:

• The Farnesina Palace in Rome (1959)
• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, an example of rationalist architecture with classical elements;

Works from the period after the twenty years of Fascism also include:

• the extension of Termini Station (1950);
• the Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome (1951);
• the extension of the University of Genoa (1952);
• the restoration of the Teatro Massimo in Palermo (1956).

The style

Drawing on the stories and chronicles of the time, Marcello Piacentini was described as a man of great culture and refinement, passionate about art and music. He was known for his severity and perfectionism, so much so that he was also nicknamed ‘the dictator of architecture’.

He also had a strong sense of order and discipline, which was reflected in his orderly and symmetrical works.

His style was influenced by various architectural movements, but there is a before and after that goes beyond the twenty years of fascism:

• Art Nouveau: leaving aside moral judgement, some historians remember the works of Marcello Piacentini the architect before 1925. His first works, such as the Allegri building in Via Nicotera or the houses in Via Porpora in Rome, are based on an eclectic tradition, with Viennese and Art Nouveau influences, very different from the architecture of the Fascist period.
• classicism: this was his main reference when the fascist regime came to power, because Piacentini was able to give form to the language of power through monumental and grandiose works;
• neoclassicism: this marked a return to the aesthetic values of classical antiquity, reinterpreted in a modern vein, and necessary for the regime’s grandiloquence;
• rationalism and the works of the post-fascist period: in this last phase, the post-war period, the architect and urban planner embraced a movement that favoured functionality and simplicity of form, continuing his work in the period following the twenty years of fascism.

Article translated by Jasmina Towers