Edifício Itália, Modern skyscraper in Central Zone, São Paulo, Brazil.
Edifício Itália is a modern skyscraper with 46 floors and a height of 165 meters in downtown São Paulo. The tower contains offices, a well-known restaurant, and a public observation deck.
The building was completed in 1965 by architect Adolf Franz Heep and marked a turning point in São Paulo's development as a vertical city. It quickly became a landmark of modern Brazilian architecture of that era.
The official name, Circolo Italiano, comes from the Italian club that occupied the site before the tower was built. The club still owns the Teatro Itália and the Galeria Biganti, named after cartoonist Edmondo Biganti, a club member whose works hang beside those of other artists. Tom Zé immortalized the building in the song "A briga do edifício Itália com o Hilton hotel".
The observation deck sits at 151 m, reached by the building's 19 elevators; the Terraço Itália restaurant occupies the 41st floor and the Bar do Terraço the 42nd, with access to the terrace. The facade's 4,000 windows and louvers were designed for ventilation and sun protection, so the deck can be windy. Visibility depends on São Paulo's weather.
The building's official name is Circolo Italiano, and the Italian club still occupies two small annex buildings on the site it held before the tower was built. A bronze sculpture, Cavalo Rampante by Pericle Fazzini, was donated by the Italian government in 1974 and stands outside.
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