Local pre-industrial communities in Tuscany and the exploitation of water

Since the middle ages, local communities which were able to channel water, organized water powered manufactories and mills, creating over time what were actual “pre-industrial districts”, indivisibly bound to the network of channels that drove the vertical or horizontal blades of the millwheel. Canals, watercourses and waterfalls were as much as factor of production as the land and iron, coal and silver mines, and with time, communities learned to exploit water power with increasing efficiency. Water is by its very nature highly dynamic, and as a consequence, since ancient times, human activity has been directed at taking advantage of it power. Local communities learned to exploit water power increasingly efficiently, transforming the potentional energy of falling water into work. From the middle ages on, controlling, owning and/or managing a water-driven plant meant being in possession of one of the most important aspects of the economy. A water-powered manufactory or mill was, therefore, an economic asset, costly both in terms of initial capital investment and of maintenance, made by man and used repeatedly over the course of different production cycles. The Tuscan case studies in point – Calci (Pisa), Rio dell’Elba (Livorno) and Colle di Val d’Elsa (Siena) – still legible on the land, even if confusedly, vouch for the value of the work culture and that of the land and environment, which belong by right to the resident community

Un (altro) architetto per la Capitale. Francesco Mazzei «valente e modesto» restauratore a Firenze

Appartenente ad una nobile famiglia fiorentina, l’architetto Francesco Mazzeo Mazzei si formò e lavorò nel fervente clima culturale fiorentino di primo Ottocento. Dopo un apprendistato nel territorio volterrano, sotto la guida di Alessandro Manetti, Mazzei tornò a Firenze ed esercitò la sua professione soprattutto come restauratore. In particolare il restauro del Bargello divenne il modello a cui ispirarsi non soltanto in Toscana, ma anche in altre regioni italiane. Partecipe della vita politica, sociale e culturale di Firenze, Mazzei fu una figura chiave nella trasformazione della città in sede della capitale

Vernacular architecture and “historical seismography”: an experience research

The history of hearthquakes can be defined as a very ancient discipline, which roots are on the tales and on records of the most calamitous events whose evidence is not easy to be found because not written but handed down orally, and the history of seismology is a good example. The analysis of the historical archives and the carefull study of the projects concerning the territory and its structure, often reveals precious informations on events that involved the place, such as the most dangerous, i.e earthquakes, but little technical information about recovery or rebuilding is given in written documentation from the direct literature of the urban context and of the individual building is possible to deduce techiques and ways of the past used to inntervene to reply to the seismic needs of the build and from which the historic seismology originates from. The study of the history of earthquakes has become a systematic instruments to determine the areas where they can happen with a likely periodicity from the past century, and relates especially on historic seismology which has its historic reference store, even if it bases itself on oral sources. Our study, instead, based exclusively upon the analysis and the direct study of the architecture, aims to determinate the needs and the technical devices, peculiar to the art of building, but strictly connect to the local building culture of our territorial reference or research. The rich store of informations has allowed us to study different costructive typology, often determined by needs connected not only to the building tradition but also to the local seismic culture. In the areas exposed at high seismic risk, the regularity of the event can create a progressive rooting of the tecniques and behaviours leading to a clear protective view. When the system becomes part of the experience of the comunity, it stays in the people’s memory. The resident population are titular of their own seismic culture that generates non codified and non written rules but readable in the constructive characteristics of the buildings, in the general structure given by the territory. Every building bears witness to its own history and furnishes an enormous quantitaty of informations: the damage suffered, the repair work, intervention of prevention. A "global" local research and at the same time a systematic research of the frequencies of the constructive elements are developed. From this will of putting the basis for a systematic study of the “historical seismography” that promotes a technical normative of reference that is neither generic nor inducing inter-ventions little respectful of a context that only asks to be left in alone

Un (altro) architetto per la Capitale. Francesco Mazzei «valente e modesto» restauratore a Firenze

Appartenente ad una nobile famiglia fiorentina, l’architetto Francesco Mazzeo Mazzei si formò e lavorò nel fervente clima culturale fiorentino di primo Ottocento. Dopo un apprendistato nel territorio volterrano, sotto la guida di Alessandro Manetti, Mazzei tornò a Firenze ed esercitò la sua professione soprattutto come restauratore. In particolare il restauro del Bargello divenne il modello a cui ispirarsi non soltanto in Toscana, ma anche in altre regioni italiane. Partecipe della vita politica, sociale e culturale di Firenze, Mazzei fu una figura chiave nella trasformazione della città in sede della capitale.Born in a noble family, the architect Francesco Mazzeo Mazzei grew up and worked in the Florentine lively cultural circle at the beginning of the 19th century. After having had some experience in Volterra, under the guidance of Alessandro Manetti, Mazzei came back to Florence and worked especially as restorer of historic buildings. In particular, the restoration of the Bargello became the model to reproduce not only in Tuscany, but also in other Italian regions. He took part in the political, social and cultural life of Florence and was one of the key figure in the transformation of the city into a capital

KC 4.3: Rural landscapes of the 20th Century

During the 20th Century, rural landscapes all over the world underwent rapid transformations as a result of many factors - including new socio-political and economic conditions, new agricultural practices and the mechanization of agriculture - resulting in radical transformations of land uses and in the introduction of new infrastructures and facilities, necessary for the storage and distribution of an ever increasing amount of products. Based on the existing documents and bibliography relevant to the topic (ICOMOS-IFLA, Principles concerning rural landscapes as heritage, 2017; ICOMOS-ISC20C, Madrid-New Delhi Document. Approaches to the conservation of twentieth-century cultural heritage, 2017; Meeus, Wijermans, Vroom, 1990; Pungetti, Kruse, 2010; Scazzosi, 2018) this Knowledge Cafe aims to analyze how, during the 20th Century, new rural landscapes were created, assuming a historic and cultural significance as witnesses of this crucial period. Significant examples are the land reclamation activities in Europe, the agrarian reforms, the new facilities and transportation networks aimed to support the expanding productions, the new irrigation schemes for agricultural development in inland areas, the realization of model towns. New rural settlements, indeed, were created under totalitarian regimes, whether inside their country or in their colonies, while, after World War II, new settlements were conceived for resettling farmers -often referring to vernacular architecture and rationalist architecture as a model - as a response to the increasing discrepancies between industrialized and rural areas. Finally, it is worth reflecting on the several theoretical proposals for new agrarian societies, in the wake of international examples as the Unité d’Explotation Agricole by Le Corbusier or the Broadacre City by F.L. Wright. Beyond the comparative analysis of rural landscapes of the 20th Century, the final objective will be also to discuss strategies for their sustainable management. (This contribution is developed in collaboration with ICOMOS-ISC20C and ICOMOS Italy working group on 20th Century

FUNCTIONAL ASPECTS OF MODERN AND ANCIENT PEDESTRIAN MOBILITY ON HISTORIC STONE PAVEMENTS

The paper aims to explore safety for pedestrian mobility in the present and in the past. With reference to stone pavements, it focuses on the analysis of all the properties that affect safety, particularly in terms of roughness, texture and skid resistance. Friction in dry and wet conditions will be analyzed taking into account different types of shoes, used both in the past and in the present time. The paper ends with remarks about safety for pedestrian mobility, specifically addressed to the historical city centre of Volterra, Tuscany, Italy

Analysis and definition of restoration strategies with H-BIM applications. The case study of Vittorio Giorgini's “Casa Esagono” in Baratti, Italy

This contribution is focused on the “Casa Esagono” realized in 1957 by Vittorio Giorgini in Baratti (LI), Italy. The research objective is to lay the foundations for a restoration plan of this experimental wooden architecture, which is now in precarious conditions due to its location near the sea, and whose constructive features, has always raised great questions about the technical feasibility of a full restoration. The paper describes the workflow for the implementation of the H-BIM model, aimed to organise all the data deriving from the historical and on-site research, and the restoration programme. The historical analysis about the house and the architect was the basis for the geometric survey and the analysis of building materials. All building components were subjected to visual analysis aimed to identify deterioration forms. The proposed conservation approach aims to maintain as much of the original elements as possible, while increasing their durability. H-BIM revealed to be the ideal tool to manage the entire restoration process, whose ultimate goal is to celebrate Giorgini’s work, to exploit the potential of the house as a cultural attraction

Roberto Mariani architetto: senza clamore e dissonanze

“Senza clamore e dissonanze” in queste semplici parole si può racchiudere il complesso lavoro dell’architetto Mariani, sopito per più di un decennio in un apparente silenzio che invece ha molto da raccontare. Sono i racconti, in tono confidenziale, di amici e colleghi a rivelare Roberto Mariani uomo e architetto. Egli, nel corso della sua attività professionale, si occupa di design, edilizia, elabora proposte urbanistiche e partecipa a numerosi concorsi vincendo importanti premi di architettura. Dalla sede della federazione del Partito Comunista Italiano in via Fratti (1964-1967), opera progettata con Francesco Tomassi, al recupero delle Corti di San Domenico in corso Italia (1987-1991); dalla sistemazione dell’isolato di via Titta Ruffo, via Garofani e corso Italia (1982-1991), al complesso residenziale di via Contessa Matilde, nell’area prima occupata dall’Istituto Opoterapico (1988-1991); dal complesso ippico “Scuderie Nuove” in località Barbaricina (1992-1993), al nuovo cimitero di Cascina (1975-1987); fino ad arrivare all’ultima sua opera, il Polo Didattico Giovanni Carmignani dell’Università di Pisa (1992-2003). Il catalogo ripercorre le tappe principali del lavoro dell’architetto, filtrato attraverso una scrupolosa analisi condotta nell’ampio archivio di architettura di Roberto Mariani. “Uno nato al Portone”, come amava definirsi Mariani, un uomo di quartiere, un intellettuale con un profondo substrato culturale continuamente nutrito da una curiosità per l’architettura e per la vita. A quindici anni dalla sua scomparsa “l’attività professionale di Mariani rimane un significativo riferimento da seguire per trarne insegnamenti, comparazioni, stimoli o critiche, mai qualcosa di trascurabile”. Si affida dunque alle pagine di questo catalogo l’avventura umana e professionale di un architetto pisano del Novecento

A ‘Ponente di Livorno’. Il sobborgo industriale di Torretta

Fin dalla metà dell'Ottocento gli stabilimenti industriali si concentrano nel sobborgo di Torretta, che rafforza il rapporto con l’entroterra attraverso i canali, le vie di terra e le infrastrutture che sfruttano le diramazioni del mare verso l’interno. La ricerca indaga l'attività della ditta fratelli Bozano, imprenditori del grano liguri e impegnati in settori produttivi diversi, che investono il loro capitale a Genova, Livorno, Cagliari e Napoli. Specificamente l'articolo si concentra sulla città labronica che, subito dopo Genova, diventa un luogo centrale e si inserisce nel circuito nazionale dei grandi imprenditori del grano liguri. Gli interessi dei Bozano ricadono in particolare sul sobborgo di Torretta, all’esterno del recinto doganale