Torre Velasca: Love it or hate it?

The Torre Velasca in Milan is a controversial building. Personally, I love it. My opinion is probably influenced by sentimental factors, because this "mushroom with suspenders", as it was ironically nicknamed by the Milanese, has been intertwined with my personal life on several occasions. First of all, the tower is linked to one of my favorite Italian films, "Il Vedovo" by Dino Risi, which I have seen at least a dozen times and even paid a reckless homage to with a theatrical performance. "Where are you having breakfast today, dear, in the villa or in the skyscraper?" asks Alberto Nardi, the protagonist of Risi's black comedy, to his wife Elvira. He, played by Alberto Sordi, is a Roman whose megalomaniac personality leads him to get involved in economic operations with disastrous results. She, played by Franca Valeri, is the heiress of a solid patrimony with a nose for business. The two are paradigmatic characters of the Milan of the economic boom and the apartment chosen for them by Dino Risi is emblematic: a large apartment located in the residential part (the hat of the "Mushroom"!) of the Torre Velasca, probably the dream home of the Milanese bourgeoisie of the time, just like the skyscrapers of City Life are today. Completed a year before the film's release, the Torre Velasca is a post-rationalist brutalist building designed by the prestigious Studio BBPR. The project was inspired by the theory of Ernesto Nathan Rogers, who advocated for a modern architecture integrated into the historical continuum. The Torre Velasca is an example of this: despite being almost a skyscraper (106 meters) and made of concrete, its link with the architectural past of Milan is evident in its morphology, which recalls historical buildings of the city such as the Castello Sforzesco. A project designed for a changing city, standing in a central area of Milan where the bombings of 1943 had devastated the original medieval nucleus. In the second post-war period, the area, including Via Pantano, Via Velasca and Corso di Porta Romana, was the object of an urban redevelopment aimed at creating a modern commercial district, which in the last 60 years has hosted economic activities of all kinds. A stone's throw away is the State University of Milan, where I studied, and the Consulate General of India, the place of my first employment. In short, I spent some of my best years in the shadow of the Torre Velasca, how could I not love it? Life then brought me back to my Brianza and Como Lake origins, also professionally, and, like an old friend you haven't heard from in a while, the Torre Velasca is back: the company where I currently work has won the contract for the installation of the LUXSOLAR Aircraft Warning Lights, which will guarantee the safety of air navigation and also of the tower, which has recently been restored.

So, what do you think of the Torre Velasca? Is it an eyesore or a masterpiece?

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