Barbara Coppetti, PhD in Architecture and a senior researcher in architectural and urban design, takes us through her research experiences on the regeneration of industrial landscapes.
The richness of our cities and their architectures emerges by a reading of their layers and stratification over time.
Regeneration, reuse and renewal of heritage are today the greatest resource for activating processes of architectural and urban transformation.
The mapping of urban phenomena related to abandoned or underused areas and buildings, the recognition of disused areas, waiting for new life, were born from an idea that develops the project within processes of adaptation and renovation of the existing. The assumption that abandoned areas can be understood as a resource for activating urban transformation processes focused on regeneration and recovery of the fabric demonstrates the centrality of the projects carried out on already existing buildings.
This process involves the rethinking of the soil already urbanized, the areas already built and the large volumes in disuse – as a reliable response to today’s environmental paradigm - which has become a key reference for any action on the city, on metropolitan areas and external landscapes.
The exhibitions “Ri-formare Milano, progetti per le aree e gli edifici in stato di degrado e abbandono”, curated in the years between 2014 and 2016, at the Spazio Mostre Guido Nardi of the School of Architecture of the Politecnico di Milano and at La Triennale di Milano, exhibited 130 projects (of which 30 are master’s thesis) of recovery and regeneration documenting the commitment of students, undergraduates, teachers of the School of Architecture in proposing themselves as the fulcrum for elaboration and experimentation project on the significant themes of the city of Milan and its metropolitan area.
The significant willingness to discuss these issues with public sectors and civil society has shown great interest in the variety of design approaches, techniques adopted, scales and dimensions of advanced design scenarios.
