Naples (Italy), 1923 – Buenos Aires (Argentina), 2013
By Roberto Segre
Although he retained Italian citizenship, Clorindo Testa is the most recognized Argentine architect – both nationally and internationally – of the second half of the 20th century. Drawn to drawing, he studied architecture in Buenos Aires, graduating in 1947. At the same time, he pursued his passion for the visual arts, and his painting achieved similar renown to his architectural works, with his paintings displayed in numerous museums and galleries worldwide. A lengthy trip through Europe (1949-1952) exposed him to the historical traditions of the continent, whose influence remained in his subconscious, establishing a constant dialogue with Argentine cultural heritage throughout his work.
Partnering with architects Dabinovic, Rossi, and Gaido, he capitalized on the constructive enthusiasm that emerged in the country with the return to democracy after Juan Domingo Perón’s fall in 1955. He designed a series of health centers in Misiones and, in 1956, won the competition for the construction of the Civic Center of Santa Rosa in La Pampa province, with development extending through various stages until 1981. Influenced by Le Corbusier’s work in Chandigarh, Testa began his plastic experimentation, focusing on the strong textural treatment of exposed reinforced concrete, compositional freedom of volumes, and chromatic treatment of buildings. The headquarters of the Bank of London and South America (1959-1966), completed in collaboration with the SEPRA studio, created a novel image in downtown Buenos Aires with its muscular exterior “mega-structure” of reinforced concrete and the continuity of interior spaces defined by trays suspended from steel cables. These evoked the expansion of Roman basilicas, the dynamism of Piranesi’s “Carceri,” and the perspective escapes of Flash Gordon. The work was criticized for its ideological content and ultimately abandoned by the institution due to the negative consequences of the Falklands War.
At the same time, his project for the National Library (1962-1995), completed with Francisco Bullrich and Alicia Gazzaniga, was awarded. Promoted by Arturo Frondizi’s government, it was stalled during successive military dictatorships and finished during Carlos Saúl Menem’s administration. This project also featured an unusual typology: below, the library, and suspended in the air, the reading room, keeping the green area of the park that surrounds it free. During the dark political era in Argentina, Testa distanced himself from official commissions and immersed himself more deeply in painting. In works started in the 1980s – such as the Cultural Center of Buenos Aires (1979-1980) and the Design Center in the Recoleta neighborhood (1990-1993) – he moved away from “brutalist” language and structural expressionism. He began a creative phase characterized by the fusion of architecture, sculpture, painting, and design, through a metaphorical, ironic, and satirical language. These resulted in free plastic exercises, with spatial and formal solutions that were unexpected and unpredictable. This was evident in the Buddhist religious center La Paz SGIAR in Buenos Aires (1993) and the Auditorium of the University of Salvador in Pilar, Buenos Aires province (1998-2002). This building was conceived as a green “hill,” blending with the landscape, and its location facing the Luján River was used to place a lookout platform on its roof. Testa received various accolades, including the Konex Platinum Award (1982), the “Architect of America” Triennial Award from FAPA (1987), and the Vitruvius Award at the Buenos Aires Architecture Biennale (1994).
Content updated on 21/05/2017 at 14:13.
