L’architettura della città

Built upon a combination of unconventional fragments from various disciplines, cultures and authors, L’architettura della città engendered a conceptual framework – as opaque as it appeared – for effective exploration of the complexity of the contemporary city, the success of which persisted at least until the work of Rossi himself, with all its later simplifications and cartoonesque positions, began to colour people’s perceptions of his theories.

Now, on the 50th anniversary of the original launch of L’architettura della città, this exhibition presents itself as a formal exercise both in celebrating this ‘mythical’ work and taking it off its pedestal, dusting it down so as to be able to (re-)engage with its tenets.

In returning to the sources on which Rossi drew in order to construct his book, in recovering the original editions so as to expound both their literary and iconographic value, “The Books of the Architecture of the City” exhibition celebrates the generosity of the book, beyond the fame of its author, and therewith proposes that Aldo Rossi be regarded as only one among many contributors to an intimately multifaceted and collective project called L’architettura della città: a book made of books.

Here, all the books of The Architecture of the City are brought together and made accessible for the first time. They are displayed alongside a set of books made of facsimiles in which all the quoted text excerpts and graphical excerpts from the original editions are compiled. A photographic essay by Stefano Graziani visually resonates with the fragments of text. 

until 22 October 2016
The Books of the Architecture of the City
curated by Victoria Easton, Kersten Geers e Guido Tesio
Istituto Svizzero
via Vecchio Politecnico 3, Milano