La Via Roma di Torino: Progetto M.I.A.R.

[Torino]: S.E.L.P./Studio Editoriale Librario Piemontese, 1931. Quarto (29 x 22 cm). Original illustrated wrappers; 22 pp., profusely illustrated. Some light soiling and toning to covers, minor wear to extremities, very mild mildew staining to title page, slight rust to staples, overall very good. Limited edition of 300 numbered copies. This work was published in 1931, only a few months after the second Italian exhibition of rational architecture, held in Rome from March to April of that same year. It marks a seminal point in Italian architecture and urban planning. It also represents the culmination of M.I.A.R., the Movimento Italiano per l'Architettura Razionale. This ephemeral movement was founded around the same time as the first exhibition of rational architecture, in 1928, and dissolved in 1931. Despite its short-lived nature, it was at the time the most advanced and modern expression of Italian culture.

The architects Giuseppe Pagano-Pogatschnig, Umberto Cuzzo, Gino Levi-Montalcini, Ottorino Aloiso, and Ettore Sottsass worked together on this municipal project for the renovation of Via Roma in Torino, one of the main arteries through the historic city center. This project sparked one of the first major national debates on urban planning related to updating the modern city.

The cover of the booklet displays three photographs or illustrations captioned, in order, "Come è", "Come la vorrebbero", and "Come la faranno". The booklet goes on to discuss characteristics of the new street, addresses issues raised with the proposal, and details various facets of the plan as well as problems faced, including churches, traffic, aesthetics, and architecture.

The volume is profusely illustrated with photographs of the current state of Via Roma at the time of publication, as well as various illustrations and proposed models. This limited edition booklet is extremely scarce; as of August 2023, OCLC does not locate a single copy of this work in North America, and we are aware of only five institutional holdings in Italy.