{"id":11738,"date":"2018-06-29T08:00:21","date_gmt":"2018-06-29T07:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/filmandfurniture.com\/?p=11738"},"modified":"2018-06-29T11:27:26","modified_gmt":"2018-06-29T10:27:26","slug":"glamour-and-modernity-in-1930s-italian-film-set-design","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmandfurniture.com\/2018\/06\/glamour-and-modernity-in-1930s-italian-film-set-design\/","title":{"rendered":"Glamour and Modernity in 1930s Italian film set design"},"content":{"rendered":"

The catalogue\u00a0Rationalism on Set: Glamour and Modernity in 1930s Italian Cinema\u00a0<\/em>explores a little-known period of Italian cinematic history, highlighting the strong Modernist influence apparent in the set designs created for a number of romantic comedies during the inter-war years. Published to accompany the Estorick Collection<\/a>‘s exhibition of the same name curated by Valeria Carullo, the book is brimming with some lesser known but fascinating Italian film set design.<\/p>\n

Until recently, Italy\u2019s contributions to architecture and cinema in the 1930s have been overlooked. The exhibition and catalogue look at the role played by Italian architects and architectural culture in the development of a Modernist aesthetic for film sets of the 1930s, which was increasingly adopted in contemporary films, largely due to the production company Cines, which sought\u00a0to raise the quality of Italian cinema after a period of decline in the 1920s.<\/p>\n

\"Italian
Carlo Levi and Enrico Paulucci Set design for Patatrac<\/strong><\/em> (Dir. Gennaro Righelli, 1931).
\nEnrico Paulucci (1901-1999) and Carlo Levi (1902-1975) were both painters from the group \u2018Sei di Torino\u2019. They were deeply interested in cinema and sympathized with the modern currents in architecture. Paulucci especially admired Walter Gropius and Mies van der Rohe<\/a>, and counted several Rationalist architects among his friends, including Gino Levi-Montalcini and Giuseppe Pagano.<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\"rationalism
Gastone Medin Set design for Cento di questi giorni<\/strong> <\/em>(Many Happy Returns<\/em>; Dir. Augusto and Mario Camerini, 1933). Fondazione Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia \u2013 Cineteca Nazionale<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n

Many architects recognised the powerful role that cinema could play in popularising modern architecture; some, like Giuseppe Capponi, got personally involved with film set design, while others, such as the editors of Casabella and Domus, vocally supported their colleagues\u2019 efforts to reflect in film settings the latest developments in architecture and to \u2018educate\u2019 the public by familiarising them with modern design.<\/span><\/p>\n

These modern sets were often photographed prior to filming, and it is these photographs \u2013 which could be easily confused with the images of real interiors published by contemporary architectural journals \u2013 which can be seen in the book. Comparing them with images of contemporary architecture from the RIBA Collections highlights influences such as that of the Bauhaus, and reveals the international rather than local character of these films\u2019 Modernist aesthetic.<\/p>\n

\"rationalism
Gastone Medin Set design for Due cuori felici<\/em><\/strong> (Two Happy Heart<\/em>s; Dir. Baldassarre Negroni, 1932)\u00a0with two chairs by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, and chaise-lounge by Le Corbusier & Charlotte Perriand partially visible on the left.\u00a0
\nIn modern cinematic domestic interiors, living areas were often conceived as a single unit that could be divided into separate rooms \u2013 such as dining room, bar or study \u2013 by the simple expedient of a sliding glass door, a wide curtain, a perforated panel or a shelving unit. In addition to being distinctly modern, these fluid, open interiors facilitated camera movements.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n