New Materials on Show. Legacy of the Italian Fascist Exhibitions between Autarchy and Innovation (1932–40)

Following the sanctions imposed by the international community to Italy after the invasion of Ethiopia (1935), fascist regime radicalized its aspiration to be economically self–sufficient shifting to an official autarchic regime. The idea was raised since 1926, year of the first laws for the use of national resources and products which entailed an acceleration in the research for new building materials. The autarchy generated serious problems in the supplying of iron for reinforced concrete structures, but, at the same time, it gave rise to a season of innovation and experimentation with new products derived from local raw materials. The battle against the anti–autarchic nature of a great number of common building materials addressed the debate on the affirmation of new architecture from a constructive and aesthetic perspective. The industrial development put on the market innovative technologies that defined original features of Modern Italian architecture: the use of mixed construction in masonry and weakly reinforced concrete; wood particle boards and vegetable fibres for insulation and interior surfaces; ceramic and lithoceramic claddings; glass brick structures; natural polymeric coverings; factory–tinted plasters; aluminium alloy profiles and surfaces; etc. The most important mediums for knowledge, dissemination and testing of new materials were the exhibitions and trade fairs organized in Rome and Milan between 1932 and 1940. These events involved teams of Modern architects and artists to show the new possibilities for design and furnishing. Although barely recognized by professionals involved in conservation works, the autarchic materials are still present in many buildings of Modern Italian heritage. Despite the idea of durability inherent in the promotion of these products, they show today pathologies which require specific intervention strategies. Documenting this season of innovation allows to deepen the knowledge on that heritage, and to raise open issues for its conservation.