page_title: Casa del Fascio (Como)
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Casa del Fascio (Como) / History
caption_attribution_description: English: ex casa del fascio This is a photo of a monument which is part of cultural heritage of Italy. This monument participates in the contest Wiki Loves Monuments Italia 2018. See authorisations. (wiki-ID: 03C9330015)
context_page_description: The Casa del Fascio of Como, also called Palazzo Terragni, is a building located in Como, Italy, in the Piazza del Popolo, and it is one of the masterpieces of Italian Modern Architecture. It was designed by Italian architect Giuseppe Terragni. It was inaugurated in 1936 as the local office of the National Fascist Party. After the fall of Fascism in 1945, it was used by the National Liberation Committee Parties and in 1957, it became the headquarters of the local Finance Police, who still occupy it. The building has a square plan and four stories.
  Thanks to its high historical-artistic value, Casa del Fascio was listed by the Superintendency of Archeology, Fine Arts and Landscape in 1986.
context_section_description: In the original project of Casa del Fascio in Como from 1928, the building had a traditional layout. After many years of design revisions and construction delays, construction began in July 1933 and ended in 1936, when it was inaugurated as the local branch of the National Fascist Party. 
  In 1945, the building was forcibly occupied by the Provincial Federations of the National Liberation Committee Parties, after the liberation of Como from the Fascists.
  Soon after, the city of Como claimed ownership, even though law No 159 of 27 July 1944 stated that the property of the Fascist Party passes to the State), and then expressed its willingness to purchase it. After a series of unsuccessful negotiations, in 1956, it was put up for auction. 
  The architect Bruno Zevi and many others protested, fearing that it would be demolished or wrecked, and this became a matter of national importance.
  The Ministry for Cultural Heritage blocked the auction based on its important artistic character. In 1957, it was assigned to the Command of the VI Legion of the Finance Police, thanks to the intervention of the architect's brother, Senator Attilio Terragni. In 1959, a further ministerial decree was issued to protect the context of the Como Cathedral and the surrounding buildings, among them the Casa del Fascio. The decree was probably necessary the artistic protection law only applied to buildings over 50 years old.
  In 1963, the Italian Finance Police requested an authorisation to add three rooms on the terrace on the building's north side. Although  authorizations was granted, this was never implemented.  In 1968, the project for the fourth floor was re-submitted, but was rejected, after protests from many academics.
  In 1986, on the 50th anniversary of its construction, the Ministry for Cultural Heritage officially recognized the Casa del Fascio as cultural heritage of great historical and artistic interest. 
  In the 1990s, some urgent repairs were performed by Alberto Artioli of the Ministry, who also published a monograph on the building, Giuseppe Terragni, la Casa del Fascio di Como. Guida critica all’edificio: descrizione, vicende storiche, polemiche, recenti restauri ('A critical guide to the building: description, historical events, controversy, recent restorations'). The restoration work involved the external marble surfaces, some bathrooms, and a few concrete-framed glass block surfaces. This works brought up new issues around the restoration of Modern, which were often not recognized as works of artistic value.
  In 1993, on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of Giuseppe Terragni's death, the Superintendency organized a study day Materiali per comprendere Terragni e il suo tempo ('Materials for understanding Terragni and his times'). It was attended by Paolo Portoghesi, Alberto Sartorio, Lodovico Barbiano di Belgiojoso, Virgilio Vercelloni, and others.
  In 2004, for the centenary of Terragni’s birth, the Superintendency of Archeology, Fine Arts and Landscape in Milan together with the Centro Studi Terragni, the Superintendency of Cultural Heritage and Activities of Lombardy and the Municipality of Como presented a series of events to be held during the year, which included moments of study, research, debate, exhibitions on the figure of the great architect, to be implemented through the establishment of a special National Committee. The Committee, called GT04, was chaired by Attilio Terragni, nephew of the architect, and boasted the presence of some of the most famous and representative architects in the world like Daniel Libeskind, Rafael Moneo and Peter Eisenman.  The celebrations officially began on 18 April 2004, on the architect's birthday, and ended on 30 November. These events helped raise public awareness of the importance of Terragni's works in the history of architecture, not only in Italy but also worldwide.
  In 2016 the eightieth anniversary of the construction of Casa del Fascio was celebrated and painter Fabrizio Musa from Como, in collaboration with the Maarc Association (Museo virtuale astrattismo architettura razio
caption: Projections on the main facade of the Casa del Fascio to celebrate the eighty years since its construction
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