The paper has learned that the 59th Venice Biennale will open this weekend. In addition to the exhibition, one will see a new work by the British architect David Chipperfield in Venice: the old administrative residence building in St. Mark's Square. This is the first time the building has been open to the public in half a century. Coincidentally, Chipperfield was also the curator of the 2012 Venice Biennale. The restoration of the old archdiocese building aims to enter the "Eternal Symphony" of the constant evolution and renewal of the city of Venice, adding a layer of contemporary depth to the heritage of St. Mark's Square through renovation and integration, as well as the emphasis on publicity and sociality.
The old administrative residence building occupies the entire north side of St. Mark's Square by Richard Davies
Historian Sigfried Giedion argues that the most beautiful urban cores always take a long time to form. In Venice, It took 500 years for St. Mark's Square to continuously transform open spaces and surrounding buildings to become a place of celebration on the human scale as we know it today. In his attempt to grasp the essence of this public space, Corbusier used the term "visual acoustics." From this perspective, David Chipperfield Architects Milan's restoration of the old Procuratie Vecchie building aims to enter the ever-evolving and updated "Symphony of Eternity" in the city of Venice, adding a layer of contemporary depth to the heritage of St. Mark's Square.
Behind the façade of the old administrative residence building, Alessandra Chemollo
The old archgeon building, named after the chief executive of San Marco — the official second only to the Governor in prestige — is one of the three buildings that surround St. Mark's Square. It is located in front of St. Mark's Basilica, on the north side of the square; on the south side is the New Palazzo Nuove (1583–1640), and to the west is the Napoleonic Wing (aka the "Newest Palate", 1807–14). The old administrative residence building dates back to the early 16th century and was built by architects Mauro Codussi, Bartolomeo Bon and Jacopo Sansovino based on an earlier broken structure, making it a conceptual model of substitution and layering. The classical language of arches and loggias was typically expressed in the old arches and loggias, which will later influence the design of the other two buildings.
The new roof platform allows people to admire the Alberto Parise of St. Mark's Square from different perspectives
David Chipfield's intervention did not touch the façade, only the interior of the more than 100,000-square-foot building, but it maintained social and visual continuity with the surrounding publicity. This seemingly "introverted" project not only fully utilizes the interior space of the building, but in doing so, also develops the outward potential of the building's connection to the environment. Today, whether inside the old arch-administration building or on its open roof, onlookers will be able to see St. Mark's Square from a variety of new perspectives, breathing new life into the heart of Venice.
The restored old administrative residence building will open its doors to the city: four floors will be transformed into a new space for exhibitions and events, and an auditorium connected to the Human Safety Net, the main function of the building, whose mission is to support vulnerable groups, was created by the Italian company Assicurazioni Generali, which commissioned the physical and social transformation of the building. The second and third floors of the building will house multiple offices, making it a special office building in a city of tourists and museums. "In many cases, the idea of an office building can be boring, but we shouldn't lose sight of the importance of creating an office space in the heart of Venice, which may be a more important symbol than opening up more travel opportunities." David Chipfield mentioned.
The four-storey auditorium Alberto Parise
Faced with the introverted and extroverted character of the old Administrative Residence building, as well as the complexity of the building's centuries-old renovation, David Chipfield Milano took a series of interventions, rather than a completely negative gesture by a genius architect, and the project underwent two years of design and three years of construction. The whole process is carried out in close cooperation with local artisans who provide cultural and technical knowledge, and their skills and abilities prove to be quite important during the construction phase, without whom it would lead to very different results. As Chipperfield points out, "That's where the real fascination of working on restoration projects is — the involvement of craftsmen, the close involvement, and that's what all construction sites should be." ”
According to Cristiano Billia, deputy director of David Chipfield Milan, the architects "maintained a delicate balance between conservation and integration," which included "revealing" versus "refurbishing." For example, they found traces of frescoes on the third floor, ancient Venetian terrazzo floors on the second floor, and juxtapositions of brick wall motifs from different periods on the fourth floor, all of which were "revealed". Where the original element is damaged and cannot be saved, it needs to be consolidated to replace it.
Arcade Alessandra Chemollo
The restoration of the fourth floor highlights the historical traces and layering of the building, making the building oriented to a new social life, with long arcades connecting different rooms and separated by a sequence of structural walls. In addition to this horizontal connection, the vertical moving lines are reorganized to form a wide and open staircase within the atrium, presenting a dialogue between contemporary interventions and existing historical hierarchies without affecting the main space of the building.
From the model, you can see the architect's design for the vertical moving line David Chipperfield Architects
The renovation and renovation focused on ancient, traditional local building techniques and used manual craftsmanship on floors, walls and ceilings. The architect used pastellone and terrazzo, marmorino and scialbatura, as well as modern concrete wall tiles (cocciopesto) and Italian bricks (cotto), thus constructing the new space in a holistic way without imposing an emphasis on heritage. And to restore the centuries-old sense of existence and integrity of architecture and space in a representative site in Venice.
David Chipfield
David Chipfield's designs are known for their lightness and simplicity, with particular expertise in museum design and retrofitting. His masterpieces include the renovation of a new museum in Berlin, Germany, which won the 2012 Mies van der Rohe Award. "I feel like the building is in some kind of crisis right now," Chipperfield said in an interview a few years ago. "We lack social goals. What we see today are buildings that act as investments. We built a lot of buildings, but we built big investment projects. On the other hand, he argues, "There is nothing more interesting than building a nice stairwell, a nice space; but they have to bring something else." I have a responsibility to pay attention to the materials and social significance of the building. A good building is not just a good place, it's about how you will live, it's about how the building will help you live better.
(This article is compiled based on architecturalrecord.com related reports, etc.)