Legacy of Fascist Architecture. Ideology and Conservation: the case of the former Casa del Fascio e dell’Ospitalità in Predappio

Abstract

The Casa del Fascio e dell'Ospitalità of Predappio is a significant case study of an iconic building that, more than others, has materialized the “architectural propaganda” of the fascist regime in Italy between the two World Wars. The project by Arnaldo Fuzzi (1891-1974) was supposed to be the manifesto of the architectural and technological progress of the Fascist regime, but it will become instead an expression of the failure of its management skills. In the post-war period, this building fell into a state of neglect, due both to the fact that it was one of the most symbolic architectureS of the regime and to the inability to find an adequate re-use – becoming a sort of “dead monument”. In 2010 the former Casa del Fascio was appointed a “listed building” giving a boost to the preservation of this architecture as a document of a “difficult heritage”. The present contribution matches historical research and preservation, explaining the path that leads up to the current restoration project (2019-2020). The intervention methodology searches for a balance between the preservation of the building identity and the necessary adaptation to the current needs, choosing a multidisciplinary and coordinated approach.