Brutalism in Italy emerged in the post-war decades as both a radical response to reconstruction needs and an aesthetic rebellion against the softness of traditional architectural language. Born in the late 1950s and gaining strength through the 1960s and 1970s, it found fertile ground in a country balancing modernist ambitions with centuries of historical legacy. Concrete became the raw protagonist, celebrated for its honesty, plasticity, and monumental presence, giving rise to buildings that were as functional as they were sculptural. Cities like Rome, Milan, Bologna, and Florence became laboratories for this expressive architecture, where exposed concrete, bold geometries, and an almost monolithic sense of scale reshaped urban landscapes. Architects such as Vittoriano Viganò, Carlo Aymonino, Giovanni Michelucci, and Paolo Portoghesi pushed the boundaries of design, creating iconic projects that still challenge perceptions of beauty and utility.

Among the regions where Italian Brutalism found a particularly fertile ground, Piedmont stands out. Known for its strong industrial tradition, with Turin as its beating heart, Piedmont in the mid-20th century was a laboratory of engineering and social experimentation. The post-war need for new infrastructures, factories, administrative buildings, and social housing aligned perfectly with Brutalism’s ethos: honest materials, functional design, and monumental form.

Turin, in particular, became a hub for architects and engineers pushing concrete to its structural and expressive limits. The Palazzo del Lavoro by Pier Luigi Nervi and Gio Ponti (1961) is an icon of this approach, a pavilion designed for the Italia ’61 Expo that celebrates concrete’s sculptural potential and Nervi’s unparalleled engineering ingenuity. Its roof structure, with 16 mushroom-shaped pillars supporting a vast modular grid, is as much a feat of engineering as it is an architectural manifesto.

“In all of my design work, I have found that structural insights, interpreted and refined through diligent research and proportioning, are the most powerful sources of architectural inspiration.”

– Pier Luigi Nervi

Beyond exhibition spaces, Piedmont embraced Brutalism in everyday life. Social housing complexes like the INA-Casa projects and public buildings in Turin and surrounding areas adopted exposed concrete as a symbol of progress and honesty, breaking away from traditional decorative facades. Villa Gontero, located in Cumiana in the province of Turin, stands as a singular experiment where architecture and engineering converge in bold harmony. Built between 1969 and 1971, it captures a moment when Italian architects had fully absorbed the lessons of Brutalism and were beginning to reinterpret them through their own cultural and structural lens.

The villa was designed by Carlo Graffi, a Turinese architect with deep ties to modern experimentation, and Sergio Musmeci, an engineer celebrated for his visionary structural solutions. Graffi, who had previously collaborated with the enigmatic Carlo Mollino, entrusted Musmeci with the villa’s structural design—a collaboration that brought together two creative worlds.


Photo by @fabien_dendievel

From the outside, Villa Gontero asserts itself as a landmark in the Piedmontese landscape. Its form is a composition of stepped reinforced concrete floors supported by an ingenious structural system. The plan pivots around a circular concrete core containing a spiral iron staircase, a functional yet sculptural gesture anchoring the home. Simple geometric volumes and exposed concrete surfaces speak to Brutalism’s aesthetic principles, but the architecture’s character diverges from strict Brutalist orthodoxy.

Photo by @yesterdayhere

Critics have long debated Villa Gontero’s classification. Despite the raw presence of concrete, Musmeci’s structural training—shaped more by the rationalist engineering of Pier Luigi Nervi and Riccardo Morandi than by Brutalism’s stark ideology—imbued the villa with a sense of elegance and experimental fluidity. Where Brutalism often leaned toward monumental austerity, Villa Gontero embraces contrast: its raw concrete frame softened by brightly colored windows and doors, and its interiors warmed by wooden parquet flooring. Beyond residential experiments like Villa Gontero, Piedmont is also home to a number of remarkable industrial and commercial buildings that embraced Brutalism’s raw and functional aesthetic.

The Lingotto plant in Turin is one of Italy’s most famous industrial icons. Originally designed by engineer Giacomo Mattè-Trucco in the 1920s, the factory was a pioneering example of industrial modernism, with its distinctive rooftop test track symbolizing the fusion of engineering and architecture. By the 1960s and 1970s, however, as FIAT expanded its production capacities and adapted to new technologies, the Lingotto complex underwent a series of structural additions and expansions that reflected the evolving architectural language of the time. 

“Mattè‑Trucco's genius lay in transforming reinforced concrete into sculptural and functional forms—even in industrial settings—creating structures where engineering and aesthetics coexist.”

Unlike the rationalist purity of the original building, these later extensions adopted Brutalist elements, embracing raw, exposed concrete, rigid structural frames, and rough surface finishes. The extensions were utilitarian yet monumental, embodying a functional honesty aligned with Brutalism’s ethos: to celebrate material and structure rather than conceal them.

Photo by Åke E:Son Lindman

The visual impact was striking. The new sections juxtaposed the sleek, horizontal lines of the original plant with heavier, more sculptural geometries, creating a dialogue between past and present architectural philosophies. Concrete frames supported vast production halls, while sheer vertical cores and service towers emphasized verticality—an unusual but deliberate contrast to the horizontal flow of the original design. These interventions reflected not just an aesthetic choice but a cultural shift: FIAT, at the peak of its industrial power, sought to project an image of strength and progress through architecture that was raw, unapologetic, and modern.

“It is one of the most impressive shows that the industry has ever offered.”

– Le Corbusier

If Lingotto represents the industrial power of Turin, Ivrea tells a different yet equally compelling story—one of industry as cultural experiment. Here, the Olivetti company built far more than typewriters, calculators, or computers; it created a “Mouvement”, a holistic vision where technology, architecture, and social welfare coexisted in harmony. Under the leadership of Adriano Olivetti, architecture became a tool for shaping not only workplaces but entire communities. This vision materialized in a series of Brutalist-inspired structures that prioritized functionality, honesty of materials, and a human-centered approach to design. The Olivetti Factory Complex is one such example, where exposed concrete frames and modular layouts translated the company’s ethos of efficiency and openness into architectural form.

Equally significant is La Serra, a multifunctional complex built in Ivrea between the late 1960s and early 1970s. Conceived as a hybrid building that combined commercial areas, offices, and spaces for social and cultural gatherings, La Serra became one of the most emblematic expressions of Olivetti’s urban vision.

The complex is characterized by its monumental, angular forms in exposed reinforced concrete, which dominate the surrounding landscape. Its façade features deeply set window modules that create a play of light and shadow, emphasizing the thickness and weight of its structure. Internally, La Serra was designed for flexibility of use, with modular open spaces that could be adapted for retail, administrative offices, and community activities. Over time, the building hosted everything from small shops to meeting halls, underscoring its role as an urban catalyst rather than just a single-purpose facility. The raw materiality of the concrete surfaces—left intentionally unfinished—gives the building a tactile, almost sculptural quality. It exemplifies how Brutalism, when applied thoughtfully, could create not only monumental architecture but also accessible civic spaces meant to be lived in and experienced daily.

La Serra, image courtesy @unocaseimmobiliari

Nearby, the Ex Sertec Offices—designed for one of Olivetti’s technical divisions—present another compelling case of Brutalism adapted to corporate needs. This building was conceived as a technical and administrative hub, reflecting Olivetti’s philosophy of creating workplaces that were efficient, open, and visually striking. Its structural design is defined by exposed concrete framing and modular grid layouts, a solution that facilitated both structural clarity and future adaptability.

“The street, the factory, the house are the most substantial and visible elements of a civilisation in evolution.”

– Adriano Olivetti

Olivetti’s influence was not limited to Piedmont or even to Italy itself. Its architectural vision, deeply rooted in a humanistic approach to design and its embrace of modernity, crossed borders and inspired projects abroad. The symbolic apex of this international reach came in 1970, when the company commissioned Kenzo Tange—a globally renowned Japanese architect and one of the leading exponents of Metabolism and Brutalism—to design the Olivetti Technical Centre and Warehouse in Yokohama.

Olivetti Technical Complex, illustration by Jared Nage.

Tange, already celebrated for his monumental works such as the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and his experimental Metabolist projects, approached the commission with an architectural language that resonated with Olivetti’s forward-thinking ethos. The Yokohama Technical Centre was conceived not merely as a factory or storage facility, but as a symbol of technological innovation and global cultural exchange.

Olivetti Technical Complex, images courtesy Olivetti

Its design also integrated Tange’s Metabolist principles, such as expandable modular frameworks intended to accommodate future growth—an idea directly aligned with Olivetti’s identity as a dynamic and innovative company. While practical in its function as a technical centre and warehouse, the complex transcended the typical aesthetic of industrial facilities, becoming a landmark of Japanese Brutalist architecture.

“After experiencing their grandeur, trying to reach the sky, and their ineffably mystical spaces, I began to imagine new spaces, and I wanted to create them using modern technology.”

– Kenzo Tange

Today, the Olivetti Technical Centre and Warehouse in Yokohama stands as a rare testament to cross-continental collaboration in industrial architecture during the late 20th century. It embodies how Olivetti’s architectural “mouvement” was not confined to Ivrea or to Italy but was instead an international phenomenon, merging Italian design culture with global architectural experimentation. Through this project, Olivetti demonstrated that architecture could serve not just as an operational tool but as an ambassador of corporate vision and cultural values on an international stage.

From Ivrea to Yokohama, Piedmont’s Brutalism wasn’t just architecture—it was a cultural statement of innovation and ambition. These concrete icons still challenge us today. Can their raw power and social vision still inspire the cities we build now?

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Words: Simone Lorusso