Paolo Soleri: Utopias, Contradictions, and Abuse Allegations
Luigi Prestinenza Puglisi revisits Paolo Soleri's legacy, highlighting the tension between his utopian arcologies and their dystopian potential, as seen in films like Blade Runner. Soleri's realized projects—Cosanti (1961) and Arcosanti (1970)—reveal a complex, contradictory figure: a visionary who designed megastructures yet lived apart from his community, claiming not to be a social animal. His architectural skill is evident in the Solimene ceramics factory (Vietri sul Mare, 1951), which innovatively combined soft tech and high tech, and Cosanti's earth-cast domes. Influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright, Soleri rejected Wright's Broadacre City as suburban sprawl, instead championing dense urban living. However, his legacy is marred by his daughter Daniela's 2017 accusation of sexual abuse, which Puglisi argues cannot be separated from his artistic output, drawing parallels to figures like Caravaggio and Adolf Loos.
Key facts
- Paolo Soleri coined the term 'arcology' (architecture + ecology).
- Cosanti, Soleri's home and studio, was established in 1961 in Arizona.
- Arcosanti, an ideal city for 5,000 inhabitants, has been under construction by volunteers since 1970.
- The Solimene ceramics factory in Vietri sul Mare, built in 1951, features a facade made of ceramic vase bottoms.
- Soleri apprenticed under Frank Lloyd Wright from 1947 for nearly two years.
- Soleri's design 'The Beast' was exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art.
- On November 13, 2017, Soleri's daughter Daniela publicly accused him of sexual abuse.
- Soleri died in 2013.
- Arcosanti's architecture is described as a postmodern assemblage, not an orderly hive.
- Soleri stated, 'I am not a social animal,' explaining why he did not live in Arcosanti.
Entities
Artists
- Paolo Soleri
- Frank Lloyd Wright
- Bruce Goff
- Richard Rogers
- Renzo Piano
- Norman Foster
- Ridley Scott
- Carlo Marx
- Angelo Italia
- Ildefons Cerdà i Sunyer
- Adolf Loos
- Richard Meier
- Caravaggio
- Giacomo Leopardi
- Pier Paolo Pasolini
- Ranuccio Tomassoni
- Daniela Soleri
Institutions
- Cosanti Foundation
- Museum of Modern Art
- Artribune
- Wikipedia
Locations
- Arizona
- United States
- Vietri sul Mare
- Italy
- Avola
- Barcelona
- Spain
- Torino
- California