Paolo Soleri, A Visonary

Arcosanti, an experimental town founded and designed by Paolo Soleri. Image courtesy of Al_HikesAZ at Flickr

Hello, Everyone! Today's features Architect, Paolo Soleri, The Prophet in the Desert.  I learned of Mr. Soleri while updating blog links for this blog.  The video trailer is for the documentary The Vision of Paolo Soleri: Prophet in the Desert, and features this great architect's exceptional accomplishments, which began in the '70s, toward his prophetic foresight of today's state of our world. 

This video, also, gives us a glimpse of Paolo Soleri's agelessness; he was still active toward achieving his goal(s) well into his 90s!  Watch him ride his bike!  Like Mr. Soleri, obviously did, I've set my mind to be totally active, ageless and productive well into my 90s and beyond.  Based on what I've seen so far, I think he is another good example of a long, positively-productive life. 

A few interesting facts about Paolo Soleri are:

• He was born in Turin, Italy in 1919
• He was still productive for his vision at 93 years of age/life
• In 1963 he was awarded the American Institute of Architects Gold Medal for Craftsmanship, as well as five additional awards for architectural design
• Soleri wrote six books
• He invented the words "Cosanti", "arcology", and "Arcosanti", which are the names that define his architectural design, and are the names of his projects.
• "Cosanti" combines two Italian words, "cosa" (meaning "things") and "anti" ("against").
• Soleri came up with "arcology" by combining the words "architecture" and "ecology".
• "Arcosanti" combines "arcology" with "Cosanti".
• His project, Arcosanti, was built as a community and 'laboratory' to test Urban Design theories; it is an experimental town.
• Arcosanti was built with the help of architectural students over years of time
• Cosanti is an educational foundation, gallery and sculpture studio of Soleri, and was his residence until last year, upon his passing.

I'm pleased to have 'discovered' the post about Mr. Soleri because I've learned of one more positive story about someone that has done something great for themselves and many others.  I am grateful that the creators and other participants of the video, other media and works honoring Paolo Soleri, have honored him as they have, and did so while he was alive and able to appreciate their honoring him, his vision and his work(s).  Below, is a synopsis of the documentary honoring his life and work(s).

"It is the story of an unprecedented artistic quest. While uncovering Soleri's legacy as an architect, environmentalist, and philosopher, the film will pose critical questions about mankind's future, and architecture in a world facing environmental, social, and economic crisis.

Architecture is the most public art form, and is inextricably bound to the social forces, politics, economics, and dreams of our culture. When it is uninspired it drags us down with it. When architecture succeeds, it elevates our senses to what is possible.

Paolo Soleri's life's work has been an uncompromising search for the transcendent in the design and creation of self sustained human habitats. For decades, Soleri has urged mankind to change its way of thinking and let go of the perception of what is thought of as the American Dream. "It is a myth," says Soleri. It is a myth he explains, in the sense that we've thrust upon to the world, an ideal of materialism and hyper consumption, resulting in a lack of fulfillment and wastefulness. Soleri calls for a radical change in attitude and action towards the conservation of land, energy, and natural resources.
Few architects have proposed more ambitious design, and been less prone to compromise. Though at age ninety-three years old, as he continues to work prolifically in the Arizona desert, Soleri's vision remains largely unrealized. Given the current global crisis, Soleri's life's work has become increasingly relevant to our world dilemma, and his ideologies, prophetic.

Soleri has stood alone for decades encouraging mankind to wake up and embrace our environment before it is too late."  Synopsis courtesy of The Vision of Paolo Soleri