Boarding school dépendence in Verrès

 

The project for the recovery of the dépendence of the former Brambilla cotton factory is configured as a structurally autonomous insertion. This aims to generate a dialogue with and highlight the characteristics of the historical building, while affecting it as little as possible.
On the ground floor, punctual structural cores generate a continuous space, while dividing it into different environments – a permeable “covered square”, open to the school community. The planimetric freedom creates synergies between different activities and different spaces and enhances the role of the boarding school as a connecting hub within the block.
While on the ground floor the structural cores occupy the central (and darker) portion, on the upper floors the space is conceived in a negative way, with a central connection axis. The common social spaces, characterized by a double height, break the regular pattern of the rooms while bringing light into the building.
The structure of the insertion is independent and detaches itself from the existing walls, emphasizing the formal independence of the intervention.
Externally, the insertion of a new vertical connection element, placed between the boarding school and the main school building, improves the connections between the two buildings, while restoring quality to this transit space.

Client: Comune di Verrès
Status: Competition – Honorable mention
Team: Simona Della Rocca, Alberto Bottero, Alina Salahoru
Site: Verrès, Italy
Year: 2020