Quodlibet republishes Giancarlo De Carlo's 'La piramide rovesciata' with additional essays
Quodlibet has released a new edition of Giancarlo De Carlo's 1968 work 'La piramide rovesciata,' which was first published by De Donato. This updated version includes two supplementary texts: 'Il pubblico dell'architettura' (1970) and 'Perché/come costruire edifici scolastici' (1969). The book, stemming from a lecture delivered in Turin in 1967, critiques the Italian university system, connecting student protests to the realm of architectural education. De Carlo contended that post-war universities resembled a pyramid that upheld existing power dynamics and criticized corruption. He called for a 'university for the great number' and lauded student initiatives in 1968. The edition is priced at €16 and features a photograph of a student protest in Milan on its back cover.
Key facts
- Quodlibet republished 'La piramide rovesciata' in 2018, 50 years after its original 1968 release.
- The new edition includes two additional essays: 'Il pubblico dell'architettura' (1970) and 'Perché/come costruire edifici scolastici' (1969).
- The book originated from a lecture for 'Venerdì Letterari' in Turin, February 1967.
- De Carlo criticized the Italian university system as a pyramid without a clear vertex, preserving power structures.
- He denounced corruption and collusion between academic and state authorities.
- De Carlo advocated for a 'university for the great number' inspired by medieval universities.
- The book contains no illustrations, unlike Vittorio Gregotti's 'New directions in Italian architecture'.
- The new edition uses a photograph of a student protest in Milan on its back cover.
- Filippo De Pieri wrote the introduction, framing the essays as De Carlo's 'long 1968'.
- De Carlo's architectural projects for universities in Urbino, Dublin, and Pavia developed an 'exploded' model of a ubiquitous university.
- The book is priced at €16 and published by Quodlibet in Macerata.
Entities
Artists
- Giancarlo De Carlo
- Filippo De Pieri
- Vittorio Gregotti
- James Ackerman
- Saul Steinberg
- Herman Hertzberger
- Aldo Van Eyck
- Shadrach Woods
- Adriano Buzzato-Traverso
- Luigi Gui
- Giovanni Gentile
- Cedric Price
- Guido Canella
- Francesco Zuddas
Institutions
- Quodlibet
- De Donato
- Harvard Educational Review
- University College Dublin
- Anglia Ruskin University
- Architectural Association
- Central Saint Martins
- Leeds Beckett University
- Università degli Studi di Cagliari
- Artribune
Locations
- Macerata
- Italy
- Turin
- Urbino
- Dublin
- Ireland
- Pavia
- Milan
- Genoa