Luigi Santarella: Reinforced concrete design culture through the technical literature

Luigi Santarella is considered to have been one of the most important Italian theorists in the field of reinforced concrete yet his professional activity is still completely ignored by the critical literature. The structures designed by Santarella – concrete frames, bridges, canopies for stadiums and roofing systems with innovative trusses – and built by contractors specializing in reinforced concrete construction represent the pragmatic experimental field of application of the building principles set out in his widespread theoretical books. The relationship between the building principles and the structural solutions analysed in his texts with his designed and realized structures, in the wider context of the design and construction culture of the time, will shed light on the interaction between the design process and construction instances as well as on the mechanics related to their dissemination through the technical literature.