New Book: Architetture del noi
A new book by Raul Pantaleo – TAMassociati
“As I wander among the ruins of Homs, in Syria, I find myself disoriented, wondering whether it still makes any sense to practice architecture at this zero degree of humanity. The answer is simple: yes — we can do nothing but build; it is in our nature. And it is precisely in these extreme conditions that architecture can be therapeutic, that it can heal the scars of war. Because a new roof that offers shelter, a wall freshly plastered and fragrant, speaks of the future, of the desire to live, of the ordinary act of dwelling. This is where the extraordinary power of architecture lies.“
Starting from the story of a collective project — the architectural firm TAMassociati — and from field experiences with Emergency, Pantaleo outlines a central insight for architecture in the age of the Anthropocene: contemporaneity demands a choral model, one that explores a cooperative design approach centered on us, abandoning the individualistic and authorial I. Faced with the apparent ineffectiveness of current tools in tackling an environmental and social crisis that seems irreversible, the design of shared spaces can offer a concrete response to the care of both the present and the future — provided that concepts such as participation, activism, reconciliation, beauty, and above all, gift are placed at the center. A disruptive act capable of overturning the prevailing logic of profit.
The time has come, therefore, for the architecture of the I — spectacular and at the service of capital — to give way to the architectures of the we: plural, collaborative, libertarian, capable of rebuilding communal bonds and shaping a more equitable way of living.
Autore: Raul Pantaleo
Prefazione di: Franco La Cecla
Postfazione di: Giuseppe Longhi
Illustrazioni di: Marta Gerardi
Editore: Elèuthera
Anno edizione: 2025