Framing Modernism makes concrete cool

Modernism has always been synonymous with Cool. And, as this exquisite exhibition reveals, black‑and-white photography was always the only medium cool enough to convey the soft geometry and curves of Italian architecture in the inter-war years.

The symbiosis between architect and photographer is evident all through this 100-image collection, whether in domestic, industrial or state buildings. But a third element was also crucial to their elegance: concrete. This material represented modernism, chosen for its "sculptural plasticity", as the curator Robert Elwall describes it. Stadia and outdoor pools particularly exploited concrete’s sculptural potential, depicted in close-ups of spiral staircases, balconies and angled diving boards — a vocabulary still visible in London’s remaining lidos — while post-war Italy saw an explosion of Modernist housing developments draw on the new pre‑cast concrete for radical, curvilinear roofs.

Many architects took their own photographs to represent truly their vision; others collaborated with like‑minded experimenters. New, more portable Rolleiflex cameras allowed new mobility, bird’s-eye views and unusual angles.

Ferdinando Barsotti’s prints play with the calculated shadows created for the Italian sun, while Eduardo Persico and Marcello Nizzoli exploit the light in an aeronautical exhibition hall.

This captivating collection proves how modern this Modernism still is — and how the camera seems to have been invented solely to document this architecture.
Until 21 June (020 7704 9522,
www.estorickcollection.com).

Framing Modernism - Architecture and Photography in Italy 1925-65
Estorick Collection
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