Mario Botta

Place: Mendrisio

Born: 1943

Biography:

Mario Botta is a Swiss architect born in Mendrisio, Ticino on 1 April 1943. At age fifteen, Botta dropped out of secondary school and apprenticed with the architectural firm of Carloni and Camenisch in Lugano. After three years, he went to the Art College in Milan for his baccalaureate, and then to Università Iuav di Venezia for his professional degree in 1969. During his time in Venice, Botta got to meet and work with the architects: Carlo Scarpa, Louis Kahn and Le Corbusier. Mario Botta started his own architectural practice in Lugano in 1970. Botta's professional career begins in 1970 in Lugano. He is known for his single-family houses in Ticino, his work encompasses many other building types including schools, banks, museums, and religious buildings. Botta's work is characterized by his massive stone volumes and incredible use of patterns. He is also the founder of one of the greatest architecture schools in Switzerland.