{"id":7943,"date":"2015-04-15T12:10:15","date_gmt":"2015-04-15T10:10:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.area-arch.it\/porta-volta-feltrinelli-foundation-2\/"},"modified":"2015-05-05T12:53:07","modified_gmt":"2015-05-05T10:53:07","slug":"porta-volta-feltrinelli-foundation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.area-arch.it\/en\/porta-volta-feltrinelli-foundation\/","title":{"rendered":"Porta Volta Feltrinelli Foundation"},"content":{"rendered":"

As part of the redefinition of the area Porta Volta, Fondazione Giangiacomo Feltrinelli will\u00a0 <\/span>relocate its seat to the northern centre of Milan, which the Feltrinelli Group considers as an ideal environment for the foundation\u2019s multiple activities. The overall masterplan for Porta Volta, consisting of the Fondazione, two new office buildings, and a generous green area, holds an important strategic potential for creating a positive impact on the surrounding area. This undertaking by the Feltrinelli Group has an important urban dimension in the sense that it strengthens and reinforces the city.
\nThe historical analysis of the site drove the evolution of the design proposal. The urban organisation of Porta Volta traces back to the course of the Mura Spagnole, the ancient 15th century city walls which were the last of a series of fortifications which since Roman times have defined the city\u2019s growing boundaries. After the opening of the bastion in the late 19th century, Via Alessandro Volta laid the basis for the city\u2019s extension outside the ancient walls, connecting as a new, prominent urban axis the historical centre with Cimitero Monumentale. Today, the emptiness of the site is a testament to the walls and, at the same time, reminds one of the destructions this area has suffered during the Second World War.
\nTogether with a series of preserved gates, the two Caselli Daziari di Porta Volta offer an important reference point within the Milanese city plan. The allocation of Edificio Feltrinelli and the Fondazione along Viale Pasubio and the allocation of Edificio Comune along Viale Montello opposite the axis Via Alessandro Volta underline this historical gate, taking up the Milanese tradition of twin buildings as in Piazza Duomo, Piazza Piemonte or Piazza Duca D\u2019Aosta.
\nBesides the preservation of the Mura Spagnole\u2019s archaeological remains, the concentration of building mass endeavours to create a generous public green area as extensions of the existing boulevards. On the street level, the new edifices will house cafes, restaurants, and shops, offering an area for interaction and recreation to the citizens.\u00a0A narrow gap separates the Fondazione from Edificio Feltrinelli, reflecting two autonomous constructions which are simultaneously part of an overall whole. The ground floor of the Fondazione accommodates the main\u00a0entrance, cafeteria and book store, followed by the double height multi-functional space on the first floor, and an office area on both the second and third floors. The reading room on top of the Fondazione offers researchers and interested public the opportunity to study documents from the historical collection stored in the secure underground archive.
\nThe new buildings are inspired by the simplicity and generous scale of historic Milanese architecture as Ospedale Maggiore, Rotonda della Besana, Lazaretto and Castello Sforzesco.\u00a0They are also remindful of the long and linear Cascina buildings typical for the traditional rural architecture in Lombardy, which already were an important reference in Aldo Rossi\u2019s work, for instance his residential building Gallaratese.\u00a0This is why we propose an elongated and narrow architecture which in a vaguely figurative way introduces a roof which melts into the facades. The structure expresses the geometrical conditions of the site in a rotation of its members and balances between transparency and spatial definition. Fa\u00e7ade, structure and space form an integrated whole.
\nThe redefinition of Porta Volta will intrinsically be a Milanese Project, taking up themes of Milanese urbanism and architecture, which through the course of history have led to a series of emblematic buildings for which the City of Milan is renowned.<\/p>\n