The 60s and the 70s are interwoven with the sociopolitical turmoil that had spread through the western world. May 68’, the hippie movement in the U.S.A. as well as the bohemian British music scene, formed an attitude that promoted diversity, ultimately aiming for world peace, equality and the renunciation of the capitalistic lifestyle which had blossomed after WWII. The world had to change and the younger generation took to this cause through the student movements.

An artistic tendency, that would correspond with this new wave of changes, began in Florence through the development of Radical Architecture.

The radicalisation of artistic expression

The field of architecture and design could not remain unaffected by these historical developments. In the late 60s, a group of young Italian artists and architects decided to completely oppose the status quo of design and the rational tendency of the previous decades. The radical character of their ideas and proposals, which defined the name of the new trend, was founded on the total and multifaceted subversion of the system. Their belief, that architectural design is yet another means that serves the needs of the ruling class, was central to their ideological direction and sparked the desire to not only form a new Architecture but to contribute to a deeper change, that of human conscience. Essentially, the representatives of this radical movement advanced in tune with the general request for a total social change. What inspired their endeavours was the Florence School of Architecture itself, by refusing to change its dated syllabus. For example, up until the 60s, parts of the syllabus focused heavily on the fascist period of Italian building design.

The groups of Radical Architecture

The works of the various groups who joined the new trend, like Superstudio, Archizoom, U.F.O., Gruppo 9999, even British group Archigram, could be characterised as futuristic and utopian. Architectural graphics, monolithic buildings that traverse whole cities, collage designs, like Superface, and the emblematic Space Electronic Nightclub in Florence, are some of the most famous projects produced by these artistic collectives, with or without collaborations. The first and perhaps most significant group was Superstudio. Founded in 1966 by Cristiano Toraldo di Francia and Adolfo Natalini, students of the University of Florence, it renounced the conceptual direction embraced by the architecture of the time, aiming instead to create spaces that would respect, and align with, nature. These constructions aspired, as mentioned by di Francia, to the “monumental extension” of architecture, through the use of grids. The choice of grids for these utopian constructions was not random, as the reasoning behind the network they create could be symbolic. Besides, urban planning and life itself in modern big cities are designed according to grids, outside of which the individual, as mentioned by Rem Koolhaas, can barely survive.

Source: commons.wikimedia.org | Από την έκθεση τους MoMa

The collective, apart from its entry, along with members of other Radical Architecture groups, to the MoMA exhibition “Italy: The New Domestic Landscape” in 1972, published texts that analysed its ideology. In Gian Piero Frassinelli’s 12 Ideal Cities we read: “We wanted to demonstrate 12 elements of existing cities that have reached their logical limits.”

In the same year, Superstudio collaborated with Archizoom (also Italian) of Andrea Branzi, Gilberto Corretti, Paolo Deganello and Massimo Morozzi. Project Superarchitettura and the common exhibition in Jolly2 gallery in Pistoia were the products of this collaboration. Even though the common manifesto was radical and against traditional conceptions of design, Superarchitettura was fractured into two directions. The one supported by members of Superstudio is of particular interest as it aimed at a symbolic and idealistic approach to architecture that would keep it far away from the relentless production process.

Gruppo 9999

Gruppo 9999 (initially known as Gruppo 1999) was yet another artistic collective, more aligned with Superstudio’s way of thought. Founded also in Florence, the group strived to develop a “self-sufficiency” distant from the political ideology, as it was expressed by other groups of Radical Architecture. The self-sufficiency of the group and by extension of society as a whole would stem from the adoption of a lifestyle based on manual work and skills acquired by everyday experience. Giorgio Birelli, Carlo Caldini, Fabrizio Fiumi and Paolo Galli were the founding members of the group. Caldini and Preti, having traveled to the U.S.A., were deeply influenced by the Hippie movement and its declarations for a simple life, completely in tune with the natural environment. However, for Gruppo 9999, a natural way of living didn’t mean denial of technological advancement. On the contrary, technology, nature and art formed a unified front, distanced from the pseudo-seriousness of Modernism and the past times. Fiumi’s stay in California was of particular importance. There, he came to a deep understanding of the influence of technology on all facets of human life, which helped him develop theories that upgraded architecture to an electronic way of communicating. The coexistence of architecture and electronic technology was already present in the mid-60sin the US, with Electronic Circus Nightclub (1967-1971) of New York and Buckminster Fuller in Expo67 of Montreal being symbols of this new form of entertainment. This innovation was brought to Florence by F. Fiumi and C. Caldini and led to the foundation of Space Electronic Nightclub. The collective members’ phrase “the architecture of Space Electronic is inexistent” seems to encapsulate the whole philosophy of that certain space.

Space Electronic Nightclub

This two-story nightclub opened on February 27 in 1969, in a former motorcycle repair shop, with its interior entrance looking quite austere. Because of the non-conformist, holistic approach of culture, fashion and design the patrons had to abide by certain stylistic rules while a hippie aesthetic dominated the space. Technology would greet the patrons at the entrance with a screen that monitored the interior of the club. The system worked both ways, with a screen inside projecting the exterior. At this point, the influence and application of the model proposed by philosopher M. McLuhan Understanding Media (ΜcGraw-Hill, 1960), which referred to a system that offers entertainment in real-time, is obvious. The interior design was characterized by the black and white ceramic tiles in the bathrooms, the many mirrors adorning the main space but also the continuously changing decorative elements on the walls, most of the time found in junkyards of the area, as an act of demonstration of the culture of recycling and reuse of different objects. The aesthetic experience was enhanced by an open Californian parachute and a piranhas aquarium at the bar. Lastly, the patrons could rearrange the space by moving the club’s lights according to the rhythm of the music. As promised, the space delivered not only entertainment but the chance to create experiences. A substantial change in Space Electronic occurred in 1971 when the basement was transformed into a shallow lake. On the upper floor, a two-day conference took place, organised by Gruppo9999 and the Superstudio collective. In this “experimental school” meant for architects and artists, a performance by the radical group U.F.O. was hosted and a Vegetable Garden was planted.

Source: 1854.photography | Από το εσωτερικό του Space Electronic.

As chaotic as the world created in Space Electronic may seem, it reflects Gruppo 9999’s whole philosophy: harmony can be achieved between nature and technology. This harmony however was not only of aesthetic value. As mentioned by members of the collective in «Architectural Memoirs», the aim was to respect nature when using technology through recycling and the use of alternative energy sources. It is clear that the futuristic gaze of the collective indeed looked towards the future. Almost half a century later the issue of sustainability has returned to the center of discussion along with the issues of green energy and development and the new modes of construction that should be applied in an architecture that respects the environment.

Sources:

Fiumi E. (2018). Orgies on a dancefloor: Space Electronic. Από https://www.theflorentine.net/2018/01/18/space-electronic-flashback/.

Schwartz E. (2019). The Futuristic Italian Nightclub With Vegetable Gardens and Toga Parties. Aπό https://garage.vice.com/en_us/article/evexb7/italian-futurist-nightclubs.

Marco O. (2017). Florence. The radical revolution of the 9999 group. Aπό https://www.domusweb.it/en/architecture/2017/12/20/rivoluzione-9999-la-mostra-che-celebra-la-pratica-manuale.html.

THE CONTINUOUS MONUMENT: AN ARCHITECTURAL MODEL FOR TOTAL URBANIZATION. Aπό http://arch122superstudio.blogspot.com/2012/06/continuous-monument-architectural-model_15.html.

ROUILLARD, DOMINIQUE, et al. “Superarchitecture: The Future of Architecture 1950-1970.” Journal of Architectural Education (1984-), vol. 67, no. 1, Taylor & Francis, Ltd., 2013, pp. 119–21, http://www.jstor.org/stable/42570005.