Add To Collection
Add to Collection
Naturart Village
Naturart Village
Pistoia, Italy
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
Other Projects by LDA.iMdA architetti associati
Naturart Village
Pistoia, Italy
STATUS
Built
YEAR
2025
ARCHITECTS: LDA.iMdA architects and Anchitect Massimiliano Settimelli
LANDSCAPE DESIGNER: Architect Gianluca Monaco
COLLABORATORS: Cardelli Bros (constructor), Eng. Massimo Capperi (systems), Eng. Daniele Nesti (structures), Eng Stefano Fedi (safety), Geologist Pergentino Giovannelli
Urban Regeneration of an Abandoned Nursery Area
The urbanized landscape often offers unique opportunities for reflection and research.
When redefining a place that has been dismissed from its original functions, the process must begin with an attentive reading of what remains — the surviving architectural traces, and the social and historical significance of the existing structures.
In the urban regeneration project of a former greenhouse complex in Pistoia, the intervention took place along a marginal urban area that borders the main road connecting the city to the eastern territories toward Prato.
This landscape is defined by a patchwork of nurseries and small historic settlements that together form a distinctive mosaic within Pistoia’s urban fabric.
The Naturart Village project explored how an abandoned peri-urban area could be “regenerated” by reactivating social and relational flows. Its conceptual starting point was Garden Tourism — a phenomenon well-established in the Anglo-Saxon world and increasingly gaining traction in Italy. Naturart Village was conceived as a response to this trend: a hybrid complex combining greenhouse, nursery, and park, offering a range of green-related activities designed to reconnect citizens — especially younger generations — with nature, agriculture, and ornamental horticulture.
The main drivers of the intervention were:
• Functional mixité;
• Consolidation of the floricultural exhibition activities;
• Activation of cultural initiatives aligned with the site’s identity;
• Creation of a publicly accessible urban park.
On these foundations, through the careful restoration of the existing greenhouse and the addition of a new exhibition wing, it became possible to trigger an urban regeneration process in an area of Pistoia historically characterized by its nursery economy.
Functional mixité was achieved by integrating commercial uses within the historic greenhouse. This enabled the introduction of a food-related program that, combined with the participation of outstanding local producers, shaped an exclusive and integrated system of experiences.
The consolidation of the exhibition function was made possible by a new double-height volume that houses tall plant species, evoking an indoor woodland and offering visitors a spatial experience defined by natural continuity and fluidity.
Adjoining this space, a smaller area accommodates mini-meetings and cultural activities, such as themed exhibitions and temporary installations.
The architectural complex consists of two greenhouses — one restored, one newly built — employing different structural typologies: a pitched-roof greenhouse for commercial activities, and a flat-beam greenhouse for the plant showroom.
This typological variety reflects the functional differentiation within the complex.
Marking the threshold between built and open space, a large metal brise-soleil acts both as a visible landmark of the park within the wider landscape and as a protective screen for the interior spaces — filtering sunlight and mitigating the intense summer heat typical of the region.
The building adopts the material language of greenhouses: light-colored treated steel and glass. This transparency blurs the boundary between interior and exterior, making the envelope almost imperceptible. The goal was not to emphasize the container as an architectural object, but rather to dissolve its edges, achieving visual and symbolic lightness.
The program hosts a variety of interconnected functions:
a showroom area for plant exhibitions, a green education zone, spaces for meetings and workshops, a restaurant, and a food retail area. The surrounding ring-shaped park is organized into four main zones converging toward the greenhouses: to the west, a curated display of plants, bonsai, and cacti; to the east, educational and play areas for children; and to the north, two thematic gardens — a large rose garden and a citrus grove.
This project transforms a once-abandoned site into a living ecosystem — a new model of urban space where nature, culture, and community intersect.
LANDSCAPE DESIGNER: Architect Gianluca Monaco
COLLABORATORS: Cardelli Bros (constructor), Eng. Massimo Capperi (systems), Eng. Daniele Nesti (structures), Eng Stefano Fedi (safety), Geologist Pergentino Giovannelli
Urban Regeneration of an Abandoned Nursery Area
The urbanized landscape often offers unique opportunities for reflection and research.
When redefining a place that has been dismissed from its original functions, the process must begin with an attentive reading of what remains — the surviving architectural traces, and the social and historical significance of the existing structures.
In the urban regeneration project of a former greenhouse complex in Pistoia, the intervention took place along a marginal urban area that borders the main road connecting the city to the eastern territories toward Prato.
This landscape is defined by a patchwork of nurseries and small historic settlements that together form a distinctive mosaic within Pistoia’s urban fabric.
The Naturart Village project explored how an abandoned peri-urban area could be “regenerated” by reactivating social and relational flows. Its conceptual starting point was Garden Tourism — a phenomenon well-established in the Anglo-Saxon world and increasingly gaining traction in Italy. Naturart Village was conceived as a response to this trend: a hybrid complex combining greenhouse, nursery, and park, offering a range of green-related activities designed to reconnect citizens — especially younger generations — with nature, agriculture, and ornamental horticulture.
The main drivers of the intervention were:
• Functional mixité;
• Consolidation of the floricultural exhibition activities;
• Activation of cultural initiatives aligned with the site’s identity;
• Creation of a publicly accessible urban park.
On these foundations, through the careful restoration of the existing greenhouse and the addition of a new exhibition wing, it became possible to trigger an urban regeneration process in an area of Pistoia historically characterized by its nursery economy.
Functional mixité was achieved by integrating commercial uses within the historic greenhouse. This enabled the introduction of a food-related program that, combined with the participation of outstanding local producers, shaped an exclusive and integrated system of experiences.
The consolidation of the exhibition function was made possible by a new double-height volume that houses tall plant species, evoking an indoor woodland and offering visitors a spatial experience defined by natural continuity and fluidity.
Adjoining this space, a smaller area accommodates mini-meetings and cultural activities, such as themed exhibitions and temporary installations.
The architectural complex consists of two greenhouses — one restored, one newly built — employing different structural typologies: a pitched-roof greenhouse for commercial activities, and a flat-beam greenhouse for the plant showroom.
This typological variety reflects the functional differentiation within the complex.
Marking the threshold between built and open space, a large metal brise-soleil acts both as a visible landmark of the park within the wider landscape and as a protective screen for the interior spaces — filtering sunlight and mitigating the intense summer heat typical of the region.
The building adopts the material language of greenhouses: light-colored treated steel and glass. This transparency blurs the boundary between interior and exterior, making the envelope almost imperceptible. The goal was not to emphasize the container as an architectural object, but rather to dissolve its edges, achieving visual and symbolic lightness.
The program hosts a variety of interconnected functions:
a showroom area for plant exhibitions, a green education zone, spaces for meetings and workshops, a restaurant, and a food retail area. The surrounding ring-shaped park is organized into four main zones converging toward the greenhouses: to the west, a curated display of plants, bonsai, and cacti; to the east, educational and play areas for children; and to the north, two thematic gardens — a large rose garden and a citrus grove.
This project transforms a once-abandoned site into a living ecosystem — a new model of urban space where nature, culture, and community intersect.
Product Spec Sheet
Were your products used?
Join as a manufacturer to add your products.