In Pictures: The radical Italian discos of the '60s and '70s
- Text by HUCK HQ
The 1960s and 1970s were a brief period of clubbing utopia in Italy where a wave of radical architecture groups started transforming spaces in an ideological way.
The era, brought to life in a new show at the ICA London: Radical Disco: Architecture and Nightlife in Italy, 1965-1975 until January 10, featured experimental architecture groups such as Gruppo 9999, Superstudio and UFO who were bored with postwar modern design and wanted to create something that would make clubbers think, as opposed to escape.
The stage and audio-visual system inside La Fine del Mondo, designed by Pietro Derossi, Giorgio Ceretti and Riccardo Rosso, Turin, 1966. © Pietro Derossi
Interior of La Fine del Mondo, designed by Pietro Derossi, Giorgio Ceretti and Riccardo Rosso, Turin, 1966. ©Pietro Derossi
An early inspiration for some of the designers in the show was Carlo Mollino’s Le Roi Dancing in Turin. According to design journalist Alice Rawsthorn: “A dancehall, rather than a disco, Le Roi Dancing was built from scratch in an old scrap metal yard in 1959 by a local impresario Attilio Lutrario, who commissioned Mollino to design the interior. Known as the “dark prince” of mid-20th century Italian design, Mollino worked mostly in Turin with a crew of trusted local artisans. Like all of his projects, Le Roi combined colour, form and light to dramatic effect.”
Carlo Mollino’s Le Roi Dancing in Turin
One of the stand-out clubs in the exhibition is Bamba Issa in Forte de Miami by architect Titti Maschietto whose father bought a villa in the area and renovated it into a hotel. Maschietto decided it was the perfect place for UFO to put their theories into practice. According the Guardian: “Bamba Issa took its inspiration from a Disney comic book, Donald Duck and The Magic Hourglass, which UFO felt was “an allegory for capitalism, its arrogance and shortcomings”. The club’s design reflected the comic’s look: it had large lanterns, hourglass-shaped furniture, a DJ booth apparently on a flying carpet.”
UFO, lovers on a swing chair, Bamba Issa, Forte dei Marmi, 1970. Photograph by Carlo Bachi, © Lapo Binazzi, UFO Archive.
UFO, amphibious camels returning to Africa, Bamba Issa, Forte dei Marmi, 1969. Photograph by Carlo Bachi, © Lapo Binazzi, UFO Archive.
Co-curated by Dr Catharine Rossi and Sumitra Upham, Radical Disco drops at the ICA London at a time when nightclubs are closing across the UK and the idea of clubs as important cultural spaces needs some serious consideration.
Radical Disco: Architecture and Nightlife in Italy, 1965-1975 is at the ICA London until January 10.
You might like
The anti-tourism guides revealing Lisbon’s true, radical heart
We Hate Tourism Tours — The Portuguese capital sees millions of people visit a year, against a backdrop of political turbulence and a housing crisis fuelled by short term holiday lets. Jack Burke meets the crew subverting their city’s perception, while bringing lesser seen stories and monuments to light.
Written by: Jack Burke
The art of paying attention: How Austria’s Alps reward slowing down
Lebensgefühl — With a growing movement of art and music rooted in the area’s mountains, trees and waterfalls, the region is showcasing the importance of the human relationship to nature.
Written by: Sophie Lou Wilson
Grainy, yearning memories of Europe’s ’90s free rave heyday
Never Alone — A new photobook from Cheyenne Clementi and Valentina Morandi presents pictures they made over seven years while touring the continent as part of the Tekno Mobil Squad soundsystem crew. It archives parties, people and a lifestyle largely consigned to the past.
Written by: Isaac Muk
As Hanoi’s nightlife faces raids & repression, its underground scene modulates
Spaces Between the Beats — Tensions between nightlife and authorities have grown in recent times, as police target venues and their patrons with increasingly frequent drug testing and searches. With clubs becoming hostile spaces as a result, Hanoi’s electronic music community is finding new spaces and forms of expression, reports Martin Guttridge-Hewitt.
Written by: Martin Guttridge-Hewitt
American Football: The One With The Feelings
Many moons — The Midwest emo architects transformed a college experiment into a coming-of-age soundtrack. 25 years on, their latest iteration sees them bottle the same magic for the ups and downs of middle life.
Written by: Tracy Kawalik
Inside Parkuir: the art project queering sport, space and our bodies
Lie and play — Founded by Maria Laudes and Guiu Gimeno, it provides a framework for engaging, subverting, and celebrating the small details that make people unique – and queer.
Written by: Molly Lipson
