Paolo Soleri Collection
A noted architect, urban planner, and artist, Paolo Soleri (1919-2013) was best known for Arcosanti, a planned community about 70 miles north of Phoenix. A native of Turin, Italy, he earned a Ph.D. in architecture from the Polytechnic University of Turin in 1947 and apprenticed with Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesin West in Arizona and Taliesin in Wisconsin. In 1965, Soleri established the educational non-profit Cosanti Foundation in the Scottsdale-Paradise Valley area north of Phoenix to develop his architectural and urban planning theories, in particular the concept of “arcology,” architecture coherent with ecology.
Arcology as envisioned by Soleri included dense urban development designed to maximize human interaction and access to infrastructural services, conserve natural resources, reduce pollution, and foster interaction with the surrounding natural environment. Soleri was also a lecturer in the College of Architecture at Arizona State University, a National Design Award recipient, and the author of six books and numerous essays.
This collection originated in 1972 with a grant given to Professor Jeffrey Cook of the ASU College of Architecture to preserve materials about Paolo Soleri. It includes audiovisual materials, slides, photographs, ephemera, drawings, and newspaper clippings. The audiovisual materials in the collection document construction and other activities at Arcosanti as well as in-depth discussion and analysis of Soleri’s architectural concepts and philosophy. The slides in the collection document buildings designed by Paolo Soleri and also include pictures of Paolo and Colly Soleri, activities and buildings at Cosanti and Arcosanti, and architectural models, drawings, and designs by Soleri.
Filtering by
- All Subjects: Cosanti Foundation (Scottsdale, Ariz.)
- All Subjects: Vaults (Architecture)
Photograph showing a sculpture entitled "Il Donnone," designed by Paolo Soleri, under construction at Cosanti in Paradise Valley, Arizona
Photograph of a poster promoting Silt Pile No. 7 workshop offered through Arizona State University College of Architecture at Cosanti in Paradise Valley, Arizona
Photograph of Student Apse at Cosanti in Paradise Valley, Arizona
Photograph of swimming pool and concrete canopy at Cosanti in Paradise Valley, Arizona
Photograph of swimming pool at Cosanti in Paradise Valley, Arizona
Photograph of Paolo Soleri looking at architectural drawings in the Drafting Studio at Cosanti in Paradise Valley, Arizona
Photograph of Cat-Cast House under construction (1960s) at Cosanti in Paradise Valley, Arizona
Photograph of Foundry Apse under construction (1960s) at Cosanti in Paradise Valley, Arizona
Photograph showing silt-cast wall panel at the south end of Cat-Cast House at Cosanti in Paradise Valley, Arizona
Black and white photograph of Cat-Cast House at Cosanti in Paradise Valley, Arizona