It is difficult to describe the architecture of the building in one style or school. From an impressionist point of view, the architecture represents an important attempt to combine different types of European architecture. Due to the fear of the imminence of the Second World War, Palanti wished to preserve these styles, represented by the neo-gothic and neo-romantic, by tmploying modern techniques used in the United States, with touches of the local methods. It should not be forgotten that the cupola was inspired by the twelfth century Rajarani Bhubaneshvar Temple of India to represent the tantric love between Dante and Beatrice.
Classified by the author as a “Latin skyscraper”, the Barolo is representative of an architectural approach impregnated with dreamlike figurations and heroic ideals within the renaissance spirit.
The Barolo is also a good example of the aspirations to pave the way to a new architecture by overcoming the tensions that had been brought by historical eclecticism. From the urbanistic point of view it a unique example that demonstrates the possibility to combine creativity with respect for the environment. On a regional scale, with its sister, the Palacio Salvo of Montevideo, it is a mystifying monument to the culture of the River Plate at its highest level.
For its construction it was necessary to seek special permission to surpass by almost four times the maximum height permitted for buildings of the area. It was the first building in Argentina constructed with reinforced concrete. The stairways contain 1410 steps covered in Carrara marble and are decorated with ironwork, stained glass, lamps and moldings, while the walls and columns were covered in granite. The complex exterior of the building contains bases and pediments, shafts and crowns. The central motif at the base is the grand entrance with its imposing entrances on both streets, Avenida de Mayo and Hipólito Yrigoyen. The central body is a series of bow windows, finished with a type of mansard three stories high. The crown consists of the tower, which seen from the ground floor seems to float away from the general mass of the building to rise separately, topped by a cupola with a great number of formal and symbolical elements.
Some Numbers
4300 cubic meters of reinforced concrete, 8300 cubic meters of masonery, 1400 cubic meters for flooring. 1450 cubic meters for stucco and coatings- 70,000 bags of cement- 650 tons of iron and more than 1,500,000 bricks and a like number of hollow bricks. The length of all the stairways is 236 meters with 1410 steps. The nine elevators and two freight elevators were specially designed. Thanks to the participation of the building’s owners, works of restoration and conservation have been carried out in order to preserve the original style.