Building organic architecture in Italy: the history of the construction of the Solimene Ceramics Factory by Paolo Soleri in Vietri sul mare (1952-1956)

Abstract

The Solimene Ceramics Factory (1954-1956) in Vietri sul Mare (Amalfi Coast) is an Italian example of organic architecture designed by an apprentice of Frank Lloyd Wright, Paolo Soleri. In 2005 the building was listed by the Ministry of Italian Culture due to its exceptional architectural value. The development of this project and its building process represent a unique case study of typical Italian post-war craft-based construction. This is a non-standard object erected with affordable yet ingenious solutions such as load-bearing walls made from terracotta vases and complex timber-work used as formwork, erected without a crane.

For several reasons, the building we appreciate today is only partly the result of the original scheme and this paper aims to reconstruct the sequence of changes and alterations that occurred in order to help define guidelines for its future restoration. The building is reported in few bibliographic resources and without full details of its method of construction. The account in this paper has not been previously published: while the construction photographs are from the archive of the architect in Arizona, the construction details of the façade were drawn by the author following a direct survey of the building and after consulting the archive of the factory.