Study trip to Genoa
Ascensore di Castelletto Levante, Genova © EPFL / LAST
The studio of Prof. Emmanuel Rey of the Laboratory of Architecture and Sustainable Technologies (LAST) went this year on a study trip to Genoa, Italia. This extramural teaching activity offered the students the chance to visit architectural projects from different historical periods, highlighting the spatial and constructive opportunities offered by the urbanity in the slope. These various themes resonate with the issues directly addressed in the RELIEFS URBAINS studio.
Architectural design is expected to play an central role in the search for alternatives to reorient urban development inwards through densification strategies. Using an approach at different scales, LAST's studio aims precisely at analyzing, exploring, and experimenting with the specific issues of this contribution of architecture to the sustainability of urban areas.
The study trip to Genoa was conceived in this spirit, with the objective of allowing the students to broaden their knowledge in terms of architectural references. It was an opportunity to visit many of the city landmarks such as the "Biscione" residential neighborhood designed in 1968 by Daneri and Fuselli, the urban renewal of the Old Port area by Renzo Piano for Expo 1992, the palaces of Via Garibaldi and several projects by architect Franco Albini, all the while taking elevators and funiculars, a form of sustainable mobility adapted to the slope.
The study trip was also marked by a number of enriching encounters, such as the various guided tours given by architect Gianluca Porcile, Claire Bini and Prof. Valter Scelsi, who also welcomed students to Genoa's Department of Architecture and Design (DAD) for a lecture.
Finally, on the way back, the program also included a guided architectural tour of Ivrea's 20th-century Industrial City - a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The visit gave students the opportunity to discover a site emblematic of a development aimed at integrating urban, architectural, industrial, social, and cultural issues.
These multiple approaches helped to put into perspective issues of conceptual coherence, built morphology, spatiality, materialization, and expression with broader themes related to the urban mutation processes that most European urban regions are experiencing today.