Paolo Soleri

In 1946 Soleri was awarded his "laurea" (M.Sc. degree) with highest honors in architecture from the Politecnico di Torino. He visited the United States in 1947 and spent a year and a half being partners with Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesin West in Arizona, and at Taliesin in Spring Green in Wisconsin. During this time he gained international recognition for a bridge design displayed at the Museum of Modern Art.

In 1950 Soleri returned to Italy where he was commissioned to build a large ceramics factory. The processes he became familiar with in the ceramics industry led to his award-winning designs of ceramic and bronze windbells and siltcast architectural structures. For years the proceeds from the windbells have provided funds for construction .

In 1956 he settled in Scottsdale Arizona, with his wife and their two daughters. Dr. and Mrs. Soleri made a life long commitment to research in urban planning and establishing the Cosanti Foundation. Soleri's philosophy and works have been strongly influenced by the Jesuit paleontologist and philosopher Pierre Teilhard de Chardin.

The Foundation's major project is Arcosanti, a planned community for 5,000 people designed by Soleri, under construction since 1970. The project is based on Soleri's concept of arcology and architecture coherent with ecology and is located 70 miles north of Phoenix. An arcology is a hyperdense city designed to maximize human interaction; maximize access to shared, cost-effective infrastructural services; minimize the use of energy, raw materials and land; reduce waste and environmental pollution; and allow interaction with the surrounding natural environment. Arcosanti is the prototype of the desert arcology.

Since 1970, over 6000 people have participated in Arcosanti's construction. Their international affiliation group is called the Arcosanti Arcology Network . As of 2005 Arcosanti stands some fraction of 1% complete. Which shows that the sompletion of this project is very far from over.

Sources:

1) http://egj.lib.uidaho.edu/egj18/grierson1.html

2) http://www.azhistorytraveler.org/templates/topics.php?nid=2&sid=43

3) http://www.arcosanti.org/