Venice Studio ・ William Sherman and Maddalena Scimemi
September - December 2016 ・ Venice, Italy
Middleground aims to re-establish the connection between the city of Venice and the lagoon as a larger ecological system, exposing the underlying connections and networks. This is achieved by creating a public institution between the urban paradigm (local community) and the lagoon (ecological node), which will be inhabited by a research institute on the edge of San Pietro island. The site also becomes a “productive landscape” with water drainage and filtration systems integrated in the intervention, through manipulating the ground and roof conditions.
vernacular studies
01 Scuola: The built form and spatial relationships of the institute derive from the vernacular form of the Scuola (school). The traditional spatial configuration creates a balance between circulation paths, private and public zones.
02 Wells : The public spaces and landscape are designed following the city’s drainage network. The wells of Venice are like veins, connecting the entire city and ensuring that water always remains separate from above-ground activities. While the wells and the drainage network are hidden in the city, the proposal brings this water choreography above ground, creating a tangible relationship between inhabitants and the water.
The proposed structures also become a part of the choreography. They work as a part of the landscape and drainage network by manipulating the rainfall into certain areas of the site. The water from the buildings flows either back to the lagoon or feeds the vegetable and orchard gardens. The water choreography on site establishes the message of the project: To tell the story of the Veneto not as an “urban amusement park”, but as an interconnected network. Each intervention within the proposal becomes a part of the larger ecological choreography.
project objectives
・Raise local and global awareness about the social and environmental challenges in the Veneto region.
・Tell the story of the Veneto not as an “urban amusement park”, but as an interconnected network.
・Enable social integration between different user groups within the city. Venice embodies various communities with different backgrounds. The identity of the city is embedded in this idea of cultural infusion.
Built Environment- Landscape- Site Studies
Siteplan
