Stefano Boeri Architects
Ca' delle Alzaie
Treviso, Italy
Recently, Italy's Stefano Boeri Architetti announced the completion plan for ca' delle alzaie in Treviso, Italy. The project is the construction of three Grade A residential buildings with private gardens against the backdrop of restoring an original production area of about 11,000 square meters near the historic center of Treviso, which directly faces the River Sile, which runs through the city.
"Three small buildings on the embankment replaced an abandoned factory with 120 trees and 400 bushes planted on the surface of the building, which produce more than 2.7 tons of oxygen per year. These three buildings are a special existence that reconstructs the relationship with the city of Treviso, just a few steps from the ancient city walls and the River Cile. ”
—— Stefano Boeri placeholder image
The three Cà delle Alzaie residences incorporate elements of vegetation into the northern and southern structures, a design that houses trees and large shrubs in different ways, contributing to the environmental regeneration of the area, which is also very much in line with boeri Architects' urban forestization research direction and design philosophy.
On the one hand, these three blocks are completely surrounded by private gardens, and on the other hand, they are directly connected to the riverside park by a public cycle path and a walkway, which connects with the via Viale IV Novembre, one of the main streets of Treviso, with direct access to the most central area of the historic center.
These buildings, each seven stories high, although juxtaposed with each other, but slightly different orientations, each building's windows are optimally arranged at the best angles, both to ensure privacy and to maximize sunlight coverage and energy comfort. There are two to three apartments on each floor, each with two or three bedrooms. All living areas face south as well as the river, while the sleeping area faces north.
The shrubs and trees on the building's façade create a visual connection with the forest on the banks of the river opposite the Silay River. The southern façade is a series of three-meter-deep continuous terraces, separated by vertical elements of fixed plants. Each apartment has access to a terrace and can enjoy the shade from the canopy of at least one tree. The north façade is a series of linear overhang vases for small and medium-sized shrubs, usually interspersed with vertical vessels, similar to those used for medium-sized and large shrubs in the south façade, constituting a visual unity.
"Overall, the façade we created is discontinuous, but allows each building to fully benefit from its relationship with the landscape," says Marco Giorgio, Project Director at Boeri Architects: "Even the garage and parking spaces are located in an underground layer covered with backfill soil, preserving the continuity from this green space to the public green space by the river."
The project expands the view towards the entire riverside area, which can be seen as a linear park, directly connected to the historic center of the city. The entire intervention for Cazzaro Costruzioni has revitalized a site of about 10,700 square metres that was intended for production but is now in decline, and the entire area has recently been revitalized thanks to the "Quattro Novembre" renovation program, which is named after the roads of the area.
The main objective of the project is to maximize the green coverage of the plot, both public and private. The green area of the apartment complex is divided into private gardens for ground-floor residences and shared gardens along the gentle slope of the embankment to the banks of the River Celeste.
Mr. Stefano Boeri is a world-renowned architect, curator, critic and educator. He received his Ph.D. from the University of IUAV in Venice in 1989. From 2011 to 2013, he was The Deputy Mayor of milan, in charge of cultural fashion, and was the chief planner and propositioner of Expo 2015 milan, and is currently the chief urban cultural expert advisor to the Mayor of Florence.
Since February 2018, Stefano Boeri has been President of the Foundation for the Milan Triennale, one of the main cultural institutions in Italy, hosting art, design and architecture exhibitions, conferences and events. Mr. Boeri is also a professor of urban studies at the Politecnico di Milano, where he has taught at Harvard University, Columbia University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Berhan Institute of Architecture in the Netherlands, and Strika Moscow. From 2004 to 2007, he was Editor-in-Chief of Domus magazine, and from 2009 to 2010, Mr. Boeri was Editor-in-Chief of the international magazine Abitare. He is currently the editor-in-chief of The Tomorrow magazine. Mr. Boeri is also the founder of the international joint research institute Diversity. Since 2007, he has been curator of the Italian Architecture Festival, currently curator of São Paulo Call ing, and guest curator of the main pavilion of the 2015 Venice Art Biennale. His notable architectural works include the "Vertical Forest" of Milan, the overall planning of expo 2015 in Milan, the planning and architectural renovation of the venues of the World G8 Summit, and the Mediterranean Cultural Center in Marseille.
His works and designs have been exhibited at the Venice Biennale, the Milan Triennale, the Kassel Art Exhibition in Germany, the Bordeaux Enlef Architecture Exhibition, the Berlin Center for Contemporary Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Paris, the Generali Foundation in Vienna, and the TNProbe in Tokyo.
Dr. Xu Yibo, practitioner of "vertical forest" and "forest city" in China, national first-class registered architect, Chinese partner and general manager of Boeri, general coordinator of the China region of the Milan Triennale, visiting lecturer of China Academy of Art. Has decades of practical experience in green design in Europe and China, having worked for Zino in Milan. Zürki & Cosmopolitan (CZA), Metropolitan Architecture Rotterdam (OMA), has been responsible for the Milan Vertical Forest project since 2010. He has taught at the Master of Architecture at the Politecnico di Milano, published several papers on urban renewal and green buildings in national and international magazines, and translated and edited several italian books, including the vertical forest monograph: A vertical forest. He has participated in many architectural exhibition activities at home and abroad, including the 2014 Venice Architecture Biennale, Beijing Design Week, Shanghai 2015 Urban Space Season, Shanghai 2116 Project, Shanghai 2017 Urban Space Season Mars Seed Program, etc. Currently, he is the China partner/lead architect of Boeri & Associates, responsible for projects including: Nanjing Jiangbei Vertical Forest, Shanghai Tea Garden Vertical Forest, Huanggang Vertical Forest City Complex, Guizhou Qianxian Forest Hotel, Lishui Forest City, Pudong Airport "Rainforest Lounge", Shanghai Jiujiang Road No. 501 Huashang Stock Exchange Transformation, MORE001 Green Office Renovation, APSMUSEUM, Shenzhen Innovation and Entrepreneurship Barrier-free Service Center, etc.
Via San Cristoforo, Italy
Bosconavigli
Milan，Italy
In a project called Bosconavigli, Boeri Architects, in collaboration with Arassociati Studio di Architettura and AG&P greenscape, won the competition for the construction of Via San Cristoforo, the "Quartiere della Creatività" (Creative District) in the heart of Milan's southern region. The project's architectural and urban vision foreshadows the city's future, highlighting the city's identity between the past and the future, memory and innovation.
"A courtyard house, like the tradition of the Lombardy region, which used to be the center of a green space that connected two parts of the city, has now been separated. Our San Cristoforo project is a tribute to Milan, to the urban foresting and the water system that flows through our territory. Stefano Boeri explained. The project will overcome the abandoned freight terminal and the infrastructure barriers between the two communities, and its urban afforestation plan will improve the quality of public spaces in the Alzaia del Naviglio of Porta Ticinese area. The area where the project is located, Tortona-Porta Genova, is an area dedicated to the development of the field of fashion and design, with significant links to the development of residential and tourism along the Naviglio Grande.
The new layout adopted by quartiere della Creativit (Creative District) on the one hand connects it with the branch water supply system that winds through Milan to the Tinoy River region, and on the other hand, it will be able to turn the area into a real urban port. There, a variety of roads crisscross the countryside and the agroforestry landscape of Parco Sud (South Park).
In order to meet the goals requested by the owners, the Green Courtyard Project is formed in a highly growing courtyard building, located at the center of the public green space and road connection system, integrating the organic elements adopted into an active building material.
The project aims to promote the open and dynamic use of public spaces by the people who live here, and is also a multi-modal device that promotes interaction and exchange between the many different citizens of the region. On the architectural plan, the building revolves around an open courtyard that eventually converges on a north-facing spike that points to Piazza de Naples.
The building extends south into a huge public garden that is connected to the canal system and forms a visual connection with the suburbs of St. Christopher.
Morphologically, it is a rising spiral that extends southwards from the lower area and is guided by a larger entrance, with the building surface extending upward in a continuous pattern. The surface is completely covered by high-efficiency photoelectric plates, showing a strong expressive and colorful theme. After reaching the top of the building, the surface of the south east side of the building curves vertically along the south wall. Morphologically magnifies the viewer's visual perception.
The building's three main facades use alternating balcony systems to plant plants and tall trees. A complete "checkerboard" space is created in the inner courtyard, which guarantees a high level of natural lighting inside the building, while also amplifying the visual connection between the interior and exterior of the building.
Attention to the paths and transportation systems around the building is also crucial. The many open entrances through the San Cristoforo area provide easy access to the car park and different areas of the building. The gate on the south side, with a large awning, visually magnifies the connection between the interior space of the courtyard and the new green environment of the surrounding park. In the future, these environments will be further integrated in the marina and park. The common areas of the building are uniformly set aside in order to create a fluid, continuous communication between the private residential area and the new public space.
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The Green Palace of Belgium
GREEN PALACE
The Green Palace, the first project of Stefano Boeri Architetti in Belgium, will be a new landmark in Antwerp's Nieuw Zuid district.
The L-shaped residential area in Antwerp is planted with 1,200 plants, 86 trees and 1,000 shrubs – the equivalent of 780 square metres of green space. The green palace will absorb 30 tons of carbon dioxide per year, making a positive contribution to improving air pollution in the region.
Palazzo Verde, meaning Green Palace, was designed by Stefano Boeri Architetti in collaboration with local architecture firm OM/AR Architecten as a green landmark for the city's broader masterplan called Nieuw Zuid District. This new project will soon become the greenest building in Belgium. Half of the ground floor of the building features a communal garden, and three huge terraces have been designed to be three roof gardens.
"We think it's very important to set up a new green space in the center of the New Zuid district, both in the courtyard and on the roof garden, with a fair amount of trees and shrubs planted to provide oxygen to the city." We are very pleased with this first project in Belgium, which shows that even a small residential building can provide unexpected green and social spaces for residents and nearby residents", says Stefano Boeri, founder of Boeri Architects.
Located in the central plot of the master plan designed by Bernardo Secchi and Paola Viganò, this L-shaped building encloses one side of the block facing the Scheldt River and designs a semi-private green courtyard in the central area of the master plan signed and designed by Belgian landscape architect Bas Smets.
From the courtyard, a series of wide steps can also serve as an amphitheater where one can enter the center of the circle. There, tenants and citizens can repair bicycles and some other household items, finding all the tools and space they might need. Public and private spaces blend together in this new project, perfectly integrating the architecture with the urban environment, blending most of the natural environment.
The building's cascading structure can accommodate a small forest that will unfold on three terraces on the fourth, sixth and seventh floors. Botanist Laura Gatti chose a unique native species in combination with the forest concept to set up bushes for each terrace, and residents can access this protected and inclusive space where trees and shrubs are planted at the edge of the steps through stairs. In this way, the Green Palace will provide a unique living space for 86 trees, 1000 shrubs and 1200 perennials.
A total of 67 apartments are designed inside the building. Both have access to loggias or balconies, which break the building's fibrous cement and concrete façade. The building's loggia is fronted by sliding glass lined with wood, providing residents with an extension of more living space. At the same time, the balcony is designed as a "pure outdoor space", located on the outside of the living space. Each one is finished with white plaster walls and wooden floors, but some are shaded while others are open.
The ground floor of Palazzo Verde is a commercial unit that contains a circular space that provides residents with tools to repair bicycles and household items. The entire residence features three roof gardens and a 2,000 m2 courtyard connected to the communal amphitheater.