Formafantasma's Alcantara Installation at MAXXI Reinterprets Pier Luigi Nervi

The MAXXI museum in Rome presents a site-specific installation by the Amsterdam-based design duo Formafantasma (Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin), created for the ongoing Studio Visit program supported by Alcantara since 2011. The project, titled 'Nervi on the making,' engages with the legacy of Italian engineer Pier Luigi Nervi, known for his pioneering use of reinforced concrete. Formafantasma were given free access to the museum's archives and chose Nervi as their subject, with the sole constraint of using Alcantara as material. The installation recreates a construction site environment, emphasizing the moment when architecture is 'naked, vulnerable, under construction.' The designers highlight 'struttura' (structure) as the key concept linking Nervi's concrete and Alcantara. A notable discovery by Formafantasma is a set of rare audio recordings of Nervi's lectures from the mid-1960s, preserved by a former student in Latina; these tapes have been acquired by the museum as new archival material. The project follows earlier Studio Visit editions, including Nanda Vigo's 2018 tribute to Paolo Soleri. Curator Domitilla Dardi notes that Formafantasma's work merges scientific knowledge with design instinct, echoing Nervi's own approach as an 'engineer-poet.' The installation runs at MAXXI in Rome.