This first monograph, featured in the series Architettura e architetti moderni, shines a light on the works of Vincenzo Monaco and Amedeo Luccichenti. The book fills an inexplicable gap in the annals of Italian architecture. It reconstructs the careers of two architects who loomed large on the Italian scene from the twilight of the Mussolini era to the heyday of post-war prosperity and the dolce vita, despite being difficult to pigeonhole in the usual categories of the 20th century and Rationalism.
Vincenzo Monaco (Rome 1911-1969) and Amedeo Luccichenti (Isola del Liri 1907 – Neully-sur-Seine 1963) began their careers as architects in Rome during the early 1930s. They were among the most significant interpreters of the liveliest branch of the modern movement which, in Italy as elsewhere, opposed everything liable to impede the evolution of architecture. They also helped affirm the identity and vitality of Italian architecture worldwide during the years of post-war reconstruction and the industrial and economic development of the country.
They, and their fame as architects, are inseparable from the success of their practise: Studio Monaco e Luccichenti, founded around 1936-37 and destined to become a hub of a new way of practising architecture, where group dynamics, expert specialisations, the guarantee of a quality product and the ability to deal with all the various aspects of a complex project made the difference.