This building is located within the pre-existing compound of Scuola Edile di Bergamo (a school for construction workers), a heterogeneous mix of edifices built over the past 50 years that this new architecture joins accurately.
Conceived as mixed-use architecture, the building encompasses a variety of spaces devoted to the different processes and crafts of the construction industry: labs where future builders learn in practice, classrooms for theoretical training, meeting halls, first-aid stations, and more.
This mixed-use development reflects into the building volume’s composition, where protrusions, shifts in materials (plaster, raw concrete, and metal), and the apparent randomness of the openings arise from illuminating engineering needs and creating a visual and functional dialogue with the surrounding system.
To the south the building is connected to the auditorium, sharing its architectural language and the system of paths. To the east the office area is located, articulated through variable windows that modulate the light over the day. The northern side, which is the main façade, is designed in reference to the neighboring buildings. Finally, to the west, double openings light up the classrooms: the first line is placed at eye level, while the second is placed upward to capture the greatest amount of sunlight. A grid of pilotis leaves the ground floor completely free to host the construction practice.
Rather than establish itself as a solo voice within a complex area, the new building records the conditions of a typical industrial area, functioning as hinge and glue between the various elements, aesthetically and functionally. The result is a multiform and flexible architecture, which will be able to accommodate and serve functions other than those of today. In this perspective, the building is already designed to accommodate further expansion in the future. The building, certified energy efficiency class A, has been constructed with a supported concrete structure and dry stone walls.