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When you understand the past of a city, you can design its future. Traditional details take new forms, and uniqueness shines: imagining tomorrow's urban landscape is a demanding yet beautiful challenge. VOLUME 1 ISSUE 1 EN EXCERPT
CONTENTS EDITORIAL We Did It 4 PLACES Etage Noble Exploring Venetian tradition, from lead roofing to zinc-titanium coverings 6 INTERVIEW Rethinking Venice A conversation with Renata Codello 16 PLACES The New Normal in Porto Marghera How culture conquered the last remaining industrial stronghold in the Veneto region 22 EXCERPT
TECHNICAL DOSSIER Residential Villa A contemporary intervention amongst the historical palaces of Genoa Nervi 32 PICTORIAL Vita Nova On Murano island, a redevelopment project transforms an old bead factory into a residential neighbourhood 44 NEW PROJECTS A Bridge with a View Pedestrian walkway, Shenzhen, China 58 Spelling out the Campus Epsilon building, Ca’ Foscari University, Venezia Mestre 60 EXCERPT
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From lead roofing to zinc-titanium coverings * As mentioned in Avagnina, E. and Beltramini, G. Per Franco Barberi. Studi di storia dell’arte e dell’architettura, Venice: Marsilio, 2004, pp. 269 and ff. ETAGE NOBLE Seen from above, Venice is a puzzle of small red tiled roofs interrupted here and there by silver surfaces of palaces, churches, and boat platforms covered by lead and zinc-titanium. The usage of metals in the city of Venice has a centuries-long history. As it does not decay or break easily, metal is a far more resistant material than wood or terracotta. It can also be laid in fine slates and forma light surface which does not burden the structure underneath, whilst its malleability allows to mould and shape it into precise patterns. Since the Medieval ages, lead has always been the favourite construction metal amongst the available materials, as well as the most expensive. As described by historian Donald Nicol in Byzantium: Its Ecclesiastical History and Relations with the Western World, the bankrupt Latin emperor Baldwin II tried to glean money by selling the lead roofing of his palaces — according to other sources, he even pawned Jesus’ crown of thorns. Until the end of 1300, lead was therefore only used for the roofing of San Mark’s Basilica and the Doge’s Palace, which hosted the notorious escape-proof prison from where, as told in The Story of My Escape from i Piombi, Giacomo Casanova escaped the night of the 1st of November 1756. The usage of lead as coating agent becomes more popular halfway through 1400, generously founded by some of the families involved in the construction of the churches of Santa Maria dei Miracoli and San Zaccaria. From that moment, lead roofing is implemented, The new greenhouses of San Marco Royal Gardens, near Piazza San Marco. 7 EXCERPT
especially in San Marco, thanks to the public factories located in the areas of Orologio, Loggetta, Zecca and Libreria. Everywhere in the city, the long strips of metal start to dominate the shops populating the two sides of Rialto Bridge, the New Prisons and the Dogana. Lead covers have also been used for the votive churches of Redentore, Salute, San Giacomo di Rialto (the oldest in Venice) and the Scuola Grande di San Rocco. Throughout the centuries, the fascination for lead roofing never ceases to appeal and its usage is progressively extended to other types of buildings. Even though it is valued as a chemically stable metal with an extreme weather-resistance, lead has a high thermal dilatation coefficient. This flaw forced the piombèri — specialised artisans who fused the discarded lead and reshaped it into new slates — to plan creative solutions to keep them in place through the changing of seasons. Other alternatives on the market were likewise flawed. Copper, for example, was equally expensive, it would rapidly overheat, and it was not soundproof. Furthermore, when in contact with rains, copper would leak and stain the neighbouring surfaces. Pure zinc was available in Italy towards the end of the 1800s. After gaining a notable fame in the rest of Europe for its shimmery and clean aspect, it was discarded for being too tender and easily deformable. Moreover, zinc extraction slowed down during the World Wars, making it less popular and appealing. At the beginning of the 2000s, zinc-titanium — an alloy of zinc, titanium and copper — is sought after as a valid and lighter alternative to lead. It is equally able to bend and curve, as well as having the same ELEGANT shades and resistance. This alloy has a lower thermal dilatation coefficient and better resistance to traction due to its melting point (circa 429 °C vs. lead’s 327 °C). In Italy, the first factory of zinc-titaniumwas founded at the end of the 1990s in Porto Marghera and the production was initially only devoted to export. In 2003 the commercialisation was extended to the local territory after the establishment of the Zintek project and the registration of zintek® mark. The zintek® alloy soon proved to be a valid substitute to lead and other metals, as can be seen in the restoration of the ancient Palazzo delle Poste in Trieste, where new shingles made of zintek® were created following the original projects. In the historical centre of Venice, zinc-titanium has firstly been used in 2007 to restore the industrial architectural complex of Molino Stucky on the Giudecca island. The following year it has also been used for the renewal project of the boat platforms of vaporetti — the venetian water buses —as well as for the requalification of the Conterie in Murano (2015) and the Coffee Haus in the Royal Gardens of San Marco (2019). During the Biennale Architettura 2018, zintek® was used to cover one of the 10 votive chapels of the Vatican City pavilion, each of which has been designed by a different architect. The chapels — located on San Giorgio island — are now a permanent installation, as a tribute to how the synergy of architecture, ARCHITYPES 8 EXCERPT
1. Coverings of Palazzo delle Poste in Trieste, made with shingle cladding. 2. A detail of the greenhouse of San Marco Royal Gardens. 1 2 9 Etage Noble EXCERPT
10 Inauguration of the votive chapel designed by Sean Godsell for the Holy See pavilion at the Biennale Architettura 2018. In 2018, the Holy See participated for the first time in the Venice Biennale Architettura, with the Vatican Chapels installation. Nestled in the woods of San Giorgio Maggiore island, the ten chapels draw a path to rediscover the relationship between art and faith, nature and silence. The architects — Andrew Berman, Francesco Cellini, Javier Corvalàn Espínola, Ricardo Flores & Eva Prats, Norman Foster, Terunobu Fujimori, Sean Godsell, Carla Juaçaba, Smiljan Radic Clarke, Eduardo Souto de Moura — received information on layout and dimensions, together with the task of studying how to locate the building in the natural context of the wood overlooking the lagoon. Various recyclable and removable materials were used for the works, such as ceramic, light and reinforced concrete, steel, wood, glass, zinc-titanium. Zintek collaborated in the construction of Sean Godsell’s project, supplying the zinc-titanium zintek® that completely covers both the structure and the altar inside. Once the exhibition period of the Biennale ended, the chapels became a permanent installation on the island. EXCERPT
art and industry can change the way design is conceived. The chapels have been built in a contemporary shape, afar from the classical iconography of sacred places, shedding light to the seminal discussion for Venice on how contemporary structures should be introduced in its uniquehistorical centre. According to Renata Codello, Secretary of the Giorgio Cini Foundation (head over to page 16 to read the interview she gave us), it is important to understand the Venetian context at large. The visual impact of anewwork shouldbe alignedwith the peculiarity of the environment and the lagoon, as well as the functionality of the building itself. The choice of materials should have the right balance between innovation and tradition, with a compatibility to the context and the number of peoplewhichwill benefit from it. By studying the context, it is possible to learn which are the right tools to work in the city of Venice and its landscape, rather than on them. Any manufacturer approaching Venice and its environment needs to focus on the production process, to learn from the local traditions and be able to re-interpret them in a contemporary manner. Centring the project solely on the characteristics of the product they 11 Etage Noble EXCERPT
are selling —whether that might be zinc-titanium or anything else — would lead to the risk of making an individual change rather than a real improvement. A clear example is represented by the newly built boat embankments, which since their installation have been equally praised and critiqued for their radical modernity. Despite combining design and locally sourced materials (glass, wood and metal), these functional architectures have been nonetheless accused to be a barbarian settling in the serene Venetian garden of art. Spread along the Grand Canal up to the San Mark’s basin, reaching as far as out to Lido and Burano island, the new boat platforms are now fully integrated in the city’s waterfront. Another example of balancing pre-existing and contemporary can be seen in the restoration of Molino Stucky. The The decidedly contemporary profile of the landing stage for the water buses of Santa Maria Elisabetta, on Lido di Venezia. Introduced in the late nineteenth century – the first model was launched in 1881 – these boats still retain a name inspired by their original propulsion system, although today they are all equipped with diesel engines. ARCHITYPES 12 EXCERPT
industrial complex, head office of Giovanni Stucky’s bread company until 1955, has been repurposed into a five-star hotel by Hilton. Due to building code restraints related to protected heritage, the main challenge was to keep the flooring and the external façades untouched, while providing high safety standards. The usage of zinc-titanium coating was able to grant the requested BALANCE between attractiveness and reliability. The same logic was applied to the requalification project of the Conterie factory in Murano, also known as “the Venetian beads”. The area underwent a complete repurposing, as part of a global plan of urban redevelopment. By keeping unaltered some elements of the original architecture and by just changing the usage of the space, the new structure is bustling with residences and shops. The covers are made 13 Etage Noble EXCERPT
of zintek® and realised through an ancient technique, where listels are used to join the plates. In Murano a tradition from the past hasbeenadapted tomodernneeds, and this also happened to the covers of the greenhouse in the Royal Gardens of San Marco, established by Napoleon and now recognised as UNESCO World Heritage. The impeccable restoration was made possible by the accurate study of the place and its context, bringing back to life the elegance of a private salon for the city’s nobility, which once used to promenade and rest away from the worldliness of Piazza San Marco. In this instance, the zintek® covers give a sense of stability and resistance, while faithfully reproducing the original design of the lead covers. Tailored restoration proposals, rather than a standardized plan, seem to be the right path to introduce somethingnew inVenice. The futureof thisbeautiful andfragilecitywill have to be nurtured though a continuate dialogue and synergy between project managers, commissioners, the Superintendence for Cultural Assets, and construction firms. As Renata Codello summarises, Venice “responds in proportion to the care, attention, knowledge and respect that you dedicate her.” By lacking in any of these, Venice will react as a living organism which is being confronted by an external entity: it will decidedly try to expulse it. 3 4 3. In his project for the expansion of the Molino, approved in 1895, architect Ernst Wullekopf was inspired by the so-called Hanoverian School and used Gothic elements, such as pointed arches and aligned pilasters. 4. The neo-Gothic tower of Molino Stucky is now part of the presidential suite of the Hilton Hotel, located at the top of the main tower, 35 metres high. ARCHITYPES 14 EXCERPT
15 Born in Italy to a Swiss father, Giovanni Stucky grew up travelling around Europe, where he refined his skills as a mechanic, designer and visionary, before settling as an adult in Venice. The adventure that was to make him famous began in 1882, with the construction of a mill on the Giudecca island. The intuition that wheat could be transported more easily by sea than by land, and the desire to make his city the “Italian Manchester”, resulted in a deal of colossal proportions. The Molino Stucky operated for half a century in splendour, grinding through numbers and records: activity 24 hours a day; over 1,500 workers employed daily to produce 2,500 quintals of flour, pasta and biscuits. When expansion interventions became necessary, architect Ernst Wullekopf designed a structure that merged the whole of the establishment, including the new bodies, into a single majestic structure. Initially opposed by the municipal authority for its formal diversity, the Molino became a model for subsequent projects, such as the König & Ebhardt factory in Hanover. EXCERPT
ARCHITYPES A magazine by Zintek VOLUME 1 ISSUE 1 EN press@zintek.it Cover: constructive detail overhang gutter, Zintek S.r.l. project of a residential villa in Genoa Nervi, architect Maurizio Varratta. Zintek S.r.l. Via delle Industrie 22 30075 Porto Marghera, Venice +39 041 2901866 www.zintek.it For commercial and technical information: marketing@zintek.it © 2021 Zintek S.r.l. All forms of reproduction, even if partial or for internal / didactic purposes, are prohibited without proper authorization. EXCERPT
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