Chapter Raccontare i caratteri di un luogo. Dialoghi tra rappresentazione, rilievo e restauro

The 43rd UID conference, held in Genova, takes up the theme of ‘Dialogues’ as practice and debate on many fundamental topics in our social life, especially in these complex and not yet resolved times. The city of Genova offers the opportunity to ponder on the value of comparison and on the possibilities for the community, naturally focused on the aspects that concern us, as professors, researchers, disseminators of knowledge, or on all the possibile meanings of the discipline of representation and its dialogue with ‘others’, which we have broadly catalogued in three macro areas: History, Semiotics, Science / Technology. Therefore, “dialogue” as a profitable exchange based on a common language, without which it is impossible to comprehend and understand one another; and the graphic sign that connotes the conference is the precise transcription of this concept: the title ‘translated’ into signs, derived from the visual alphabet designed for the visual identity of the UID since 2017. There are many topics which refer to three macro sessions: - Witnessing (signs and history) - Communicating (signs and semiotics) - Experimenting (signs and sciences) Thanks to the different points of view, an exceptional resource of our disciplinary area, we want to try to outline the prevailing theoretical-operational synergies, the collaborative lines of an instrumental nature, the recent updates of the repertoires of images that attest and nourish the relations among representation, history, semiotics, sciences

The representations of the ideal town: Cosmopolis

[EN] In 1548, under the Florentine lordship of the Medici, Charles V gave Cosimo I de Medici the task of defending the territories of Elba and the commercial traffic of the Tyrrhenian Sea. The Duke, who strongly believed in the potential of the island and wanted to transform it into the center of Florentine rule over the Tyrrhenian, decided to fortify the ancient city of Ferraia, the current Portoferraio. A real jewel of military town planning that took the name of Cosmopolis was born by the architect Giovanni Battista Bellucci and by the engineer Giovanni Camerini. Thanks to its natural conformation, the gulf of Portoferraio protected on one side a strip of land that closes the port like a spiral, and on the other hand protected by two rocky headlands overlooking the sea, was extremely strategic and suitable for defense. Fort Stella and Fort Falcone were built in the upper part of the promontory and the Linguella tower, near the dock, all connected by a bastion wall. Later the defense was further strengthened by walls and ramparts also on the land front side according to the project of the architect Bernardo Buontalenti, transforming the city into an impregnable fortress, as well as a safe naval base. The study of urban representations of the city testifies to how the foundation of Cosmopolis for the Medici duchy was an event of extraordinary value, symbol of the strength of the Duke and his expansive abilities, symbol of an ideal city not only conceived and designed in contemporary treatises, but actually made.Boido, C. (2020). Il disegno della città ideale: Cosmopolis. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 785-792. https://doi.org/10.4995/FORTMED2020.2020.11465OCS78579

Cultural heritage and its enjoyment in pandemic times: comparison of cultural approaches in India and Italy

The restraints due to the Covid-19 pandemic have not only deeply changed our daily habits but have also affected the world of culture, as gatherings of people and visits to places have been banned. This situation has highlighted strengths and weaknesses of cultural systems and tools supporting the public ‘use’ of heritage, as well as the need for innovation for the safeguarding and ‘production’ of heritage. Indeed, the response of the various cultural actors disclosed their real priorities revealing sometimes inadequacies or, vice versa, creative capacities. The health emergency, confirming the socioeconomic role of culture, affected the bond between people and cultural heritage. This paper aims to explore what happened in two very different geographical and cultural contexts, India and Italy, and to identify impacts and actions undertaken to support the cultural sector, and to maintain communication with audiences. There is an increasing recognition among all stakeholders of the role of information technology for providing ‘virtual access’ to cultural heritage, and for supporting initiatives for ensuring resilient, sustainable livelihoods for artisans and workers, as custodians of traditional knowledge. The comparison shows how heritage represents a fundamental factor of community resilience, and how different approaches offer opportunities for contamination, containment, recovery, and resilience. Broader reflections can be considered for the future role of Cultural Heritage in the real life of citizens

L'ex mattatoio di Chieri (Torino): patrimonio archeologico industriale. Dalla rifunzionalizzazione ala valorizzazione della memoria. The formers laughterhouse of Chieri (Turin): an Industrial Heritage. From functional conversion to memory recovery.

The slaughterhouse of Chieri was built at the end of the nineteenth century in response to public health demands for relocating slaughter activities outside the city centre. Up until 1997, the structure maintained its functions and spatial features. After the termination of all activities, however, it remained unused. In 2009 the municipality started the conversion process of the building to turn it into a space intended to accommodate voluntary and non-profit organizations (“Cittadella del Volontariato”). Currently the structure is partially re-used thus providing the opportunity to analyze planning and design issues concerning the architectural renewal, with a focus on its urban and social impact. The building’s architectural features offer the opportunity to conceive sustainable solutions both from a technological and a cultural point of view. Since the project has a definite social mission and strong bonds with the urban context and the community, it seems necessary to improve both physical and ideal relationships by involving a varied range of competencies. Inclusive projects may represent a solution to the insufficient exploitation of the ex-slaughterhouse’s cultural value. Thanks to these projects, the cultural heritage can take on a social role and become an essential resource for a sustainable development

Linguaggi rappresentativi per la fruizione museale inclusiva

The contribution aims to present an overview of tools, methods and uses of drawing and representation in museums, with particular reference to archaeological heritage, pointing out how they can be inclusive communicative tools for different audiences, from the regular and occasional visitors to the potential ones and “non-public”. The fragmented and decontextualised nature of this heritage typology makes it of particular interest in order to investigate the different techniques and uses of drawing and representation to improve access to cultural contents and meanings. Through the presentation of some case studies, the authors illustrate the role and capabilities of representational languages for communicating archaeological heritage in terms of accessibility and inclusiveness

Accessibilità ai contenuti culturali come occasione di valorizzazione delle architetture chieresi

Using a case study, the paper aims to illustrate approaches to different aspects of acces- sibility by focusing specifically on accessibility to cultural content. Assessment of the physical accessibility of urban itineraries and historical buildings must be complemented by the creation of experiential proposals for utilization. These are based on the assumption that all visitors can discover and enjoy the cultural heritage. The design challenge is to create inclusive aids with multisensory and multilevel contents. These would consent full enjoyment for all, allowing even those with physical, mental, intellectual or sensory disabilities full and effective participation on an equal basis with others. The method is described through the work carried out on the city of Chieri and its histori- cal buildings with the students from the Master’s Degree in Architecture for the Sustain- able Project of the Polytechnic of Turin

Dall’accessibilità all’inclusione nei musei: un approccio multidisciplinare

The paper investigates the issue of accessibility and inclusion by considering the personal appropriation of cultural heritage as an objective. Through a multidisciplinary approach and survey on archaeological heritage, it shows how the strategies and actions implemented by museums do not always meet this goal and which solutions can instead be more effective and truly inclusive for different audiences through different modalities of communication (analogue, digital, spatial). The contribution highlights the role of design and representation in communicating the values and meanings of cultural heritage, and explores methods and tools for innovative languages and defining new forms of interaction and involvement of different audiences

Synthesis and CNS activities of pyridopyrazinone and pyridodiazepinone derivatives

New tricyclic derivatives with cyclocondensed pyrido-pyrazine 7,10 and pyrido-diazepine 20a,20b skeletons were synthetized and biologically investigated. The compounds, preliminarily tested on explorative, muscle relaxing, antinociceptive, spontaneous motor activities and influence on the narcotic effect of Evipan, revealed interesting CNS depressant and analgesic activities. The pyrido[2,3-e]pyrrolo[1,2-a]pyrazine structure of 7 appeared the most promising for analgesic and neuroleptic activities. The above compounds were assayed also for their capacity to inhibit DNA synthesis in Ehrlich ascites tumor cells; 20a appeared to be able of inducing a significant inhibition