Terragni nel dibattito architettonico italiano (1943-1951). Breve storia di un'eredità contesa

The essay aims to re-evaluate Giuseppe Terragni’s critical reception in the Italian architectural debate from his death in 1943 to the early 1950s through both an extensive study of contemporary published material and documentation found in specific archival fonds. In light of this, some of the received notions around Terragni’s posthumous fortune can be reconsidered, such as his supposed disappearance from the architectural debate after the end of the war. Unpublished primary sources are instrumental in showing several unachieved attempts at writing and publishing comprehensive monographs on the architect that reveal an interest that, albeit shared in principle, was far from being concordant. In a country where a civil war had just ended, both ends of the political spectrum contended for the appropriation of Terragni’s figure and his legacy.