Eugenio Soncini

Eugenio Soncini (21 July 1906 – 27 February 1993) was an Italian architect. Eugenio Soncini graduated in engineering from the then Regio Istituto Tecnico Superiore (now Politecnico di Milano) in 1929. His career and work may be divided into two distinct phases: before and after the Second World War. As a recent graduate he was involved in significant collaborations, first with Emilio Lancia and later with Gio Ponti, who at that time collaborated with Lancia. The latter collaboration was so productive that Ponti decided to abandon Lancia and create a new studio with the young Soncini, as a fully-fledged partner: the Ponti-Fornaroli-Soncini Studio. From 1933 to 1947, Soncini worked actively with Ponti on the architectural design and construction of numerous buildings, among the most significant on the Milanese architectural scene at that time, such as the Palazzo Montecatini (1939) and the Clinica Columbus (1938-40). These are the years of his practical and professional growth and maturing, which prompted him towards his own design and creative autonomy. In 1940 he married Mariele Sessa and had three children. An exuberant and strong-willed personality, towards the end of the war, Soncini began to find the partnership with Ponti restrictive. So, when in 1947 his brother Ermenegildo graduated in architecture, he took the opportunity to leave Ponti and open an independent studio, the Studio Eugenio and Ermenegildo Soncini in the Palazzina Sessa in via Ariosto 1 in Milano. After World War II, he followed his own interests, concentrating on the office and hospital building sectors. His architectural production mainly concerned the Milanese area, with a significant amount of office buildings, clinics and educational institutions. Among the most significant ones were the Torre Breda (originally known as Grattacielo di Milano), the La Madonnina and Capitanio Clinics, the office buildings of Michelin, Galbani and Milano Assicurazioni, the Torre Tirrena and the Palazzo La Serenissima/Campari.