Italian architect Umberto Riva (1928–2021) was also an accomplished designer and painter. A student of Carlo Scarpa, he inherited an artistic and artisanal attitude, a taste for open forms, and…

Italian architect Umberto Riva (1928–2021) was also an accomplished designer and painter. A student of Carlo Scarpa, he inherited an artistic and artisanal attitude, a taste for open forms, and a sensitivity for an operational scale that extends from the material detail to the landscape. His work ranges from designing objects and lamps to urban housing projects and exhibition installations. This book is conceived as an anthology with an elucidating series of critical essays taken from out-of-print books. A collaboration with the architect’s personal archive and with the Canadian Centre for Architecture in Montreal allowed the retrieval and presentation of his sketches and drawings.