Arcosanti – Paolo Soleri
Cosanti, the experimental home and studio of Paolo Soleri, was established in 1955 in Paradise Valley, Arizona, and is now recognized as an Arizona Historic Site. On this five-acre site, Soleri pioneered an earth-casting technique, pouring concrete over shaped soil to form sculptural, shell-like structures that were then excavated from below—building from the roof down rather than the ground up.
The resulting semi-subterranean forms, often surrounded by earth for passive insulation, evoke a blend of ancient Mediterranean architecture and science-fictional landscapes. With expressive domes, vaults, and sunken courtyards, Cosanti reflects Soleri’s radical vision of architecture as a fusion of ecology, craft, and futurism—a hand-built manifesto for living differently.
