Paolo Vietti-Violi

[1] Born in the French-speaking Switzerland from Italian parents who resided there for business, he studied in Geneva and Paris (at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts) from which he graduated in 1907.

His design universe, however, was very large and varied, as evidenced by the different architectural aspects, which are identifiable in the rationalism of the time, still soaked from the original neo-classical French style.

He worked not only in Italy but also in several countries of the Central Europe; he also realized several projects in Turkey,[3] then in India, East Africa and South America (including a Jockey Club in Argentina).

His designs for sports facilities have emphasized the importance of planning the overall context: public transport and access road links, parking and stadium turnstiles.

Among the national ones: Later designs include the Lido racecourse in Venice, Italy, with canter and trot facilities, stables for 260 horses.

The colony was equipped with dormitories, refectories, a heated swimming pool, cinema, infirmary, a large park of 17,000 square meters and courtyards for assemblies.

In a published description of the project, Vietti Violi mentions the militaristic connotations of sports activities in the 1930s: the stadium complex was "a grandiose and exceptional program which made it necessary to create a wide street for military parades" (Bozdoğan, 2001 ).

Vietti Violi participated in numerous design competitions for large civil works: hospitals (Pavia), factories, theaters (Genoa), basilicas (Syracuse), public structures including regional buildings.