Massimo Mariani: The Last Radical Architect of Italy

Luigi Prestinenza Puglisi profiles Massimo Mariani, a Tuscan architect whose work defies the prevailing ecological mimetism. Mariani, trained in the Florentine radical school under Leonardo Savioli and influenced by Alessandro Mendini and Ettore Sottsass, creates buildings that assert their objecthood through geometric rules, color, and contradiction. His design for the Banca di Pisa e Fornacette headquarters (1995) exemplifies this: a compact metal volume pierced like a Gruyère, housing light, colorful interiors. Mariani was also a founding member of the Bolidismo movement (1986), alongside Pierangelo Caramia, Dante Donegani, Stefano Giovannoni, and Massimo Iosa Ghini, which drew on Futurism, streamline style, and pop imagery. He produces sculptural objects from gourds, painted in vivid colors. The article criticizes Italian architectural criticism for overlooking provincial talents like Mariani, while highlighting a network of architects including Daniele Corsaro, Rosario Cusenza, Maria Salvo, Marcello Guido, and Massimo Pica Ciamarra.