Villa Bianca was built as a residential building for a wealthy client in 1936. The plot of land in which it stands is quite large and lies far from the city along the route that connects Como to Milan.
The building’s prism shape is characterised by contrasts and asymmetry.
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In contrast to the villa designed by Terragni in Rebbio (1936-37) the result is the opposite: the volume is lower, almost separate, and protrudes onto the platform anchored in the ground, whilst the veil above seems to be disjointed, an independent element that belies its attachment to the rest of the structure only in a few points. The stairs, the central balcony and the windows all cut in to the facade where the fixtures just barely jut outwards.
Whilst contemporary buildings are based on a grid of columns and beams, this structure is based on load-bearing walls, with “carved out” ribbon windows and glass walls. Only the roof displays slender pillars that support the horizontal plates on top of the brickwork, which could be considered to be the elements that give the building its character.
Several incidents over the years caused the building to seriously decline and in the mid 1990s Villa Bianca was bought by a local family who are credited with bringing the building back to its original glory through costly and delicate restoration works. The Italian government recognised the importance and historical value of the building and awarded Villa Bianca National Monument status.
