PHILOSOPHY OF MARIO

BOTTA ARCHITECTURE
Brutalism
• Importance of the site

Every work of architecture entails the

construction of a site. It is not an isolated
object; on the contrary it is an entity that
takes root in a distinctive place.

For this reason the territory is an integral

part of the project, and never an incidental
element. From this point of view, it can be
said that architecture is the discipline that,
instead of building on a site, builds that
site.
• Light
Light generates space. It gives emphasis
and rhythm, it marks the spaces and
bestows balance to the structure:
neither space nor architecture could be
perceived without light.
Light completes the architectural
project, so it is necessary to determine
from the very first planning stages the
distinctive features that will make it the
fundamental element for the
understanding and the use of the
constructed work.
•
Natural materials
• Natural materials are
characterized by strength
and durability. They also
have a great ductility, i.e. the
capacity to modify in time
and space their aspect, their
structure and, as a
consequence, their
appearance.
•
Ethical meaning of architecture
• Architecture should have an
ethical rather than an aesthetical
meaning. The aim of the
architectural fact is that of
offering good quality living values
opposed to merely aesthetical
images. The search for a better
quality of life goes through the
search for a better space for life.
Functionism

“A house is a
machine to live in”
 “Master of Light and Dark
in architecture”

“Architecture appears for the first

time when the sunlight hits a wall.
The sunlight did not know what it
was before it hit a wall.”