ABDR - Architetti associati

By Luigi Prestinenza Puglisi - 8 January 2010

ABDR stands for Arlotti, Beccu, Desideri, Raimondo, and is the acronym formed by the first letter of the names of the four partners in alphabetical order. They have been a foursome for almost 30 years, since their days at the Rome Faculty of Architecture. Today they have one of Italy’s largest design practices with some 35 employees. Briefs include Rome’s new Tiburtina station, the underground stations along the capital’s B line extension, reconstruction of the Piacentini Glasshouse at the Palazzo delle Esposizioni, the new landscaping project for Rome’s EUR district, projects in Lecce, in southern Italy, and a public area revitalisation project in the small Sicilian town of Barcellona.
At the outset of their careers, the four were enthusiastic advocates of the “designed” architecture promoted by the Tendenza movement of those years. Their interpretations were radical and intransigent. Soon, however, the ABDR four moved on to more practical research. Complex architectural structures and advanced construction techniques were developed on a minimalist matrix that shied away from all ostentation of technology. The end result was maximum performance with a minimum of signs. Theirs is simplification, not forced reduction. Today, when each construction project requires specific solutions that cannot be plucked from a ready-made toolbox, such simplicity can only be achieved by those who know how to meld the intricate threads of the niche specialisms involved in every brief. And specialist know-how is increasingly part of an evermore technological product. Stakeholders range from the numerous public departments that flock to technical briefings, to structural, sound, electrical, plant and services, IT, and climatisation engineers – not to mention the many services and component manufacturers. Each brings his own internal standards and know-how. And each would like to have an architecture that optimises his requirements even if to the detriment of others. Against this...