The buildings which are
the object of the restoration project for via dei Capitelli are situated in the
historic center of Trieste, where the medieval city system can still be seen in
the old city. At the beginning of the century this part of the city, which is
very central, was in a state of abandonment.
The planned intervention,
in line with Community Directives intended to restore rundown areas of historic
city centers with considerable cultural value, seeks contemporary solutions
able to respect and renew the purposes of the historic site.
The project respects on an
urban level the norms of the restoration plan, which impose a philological
re-composition of prospects; it salvages the urban image of the blocks,
relating it to the fourteenth century fabric of this part of the city.
Attention was therefore
mainly paid, during the planning stage, to the inside of the coverings, which
are more flexible, where above all the common parts had been conceived
as a contemporary design expression. The parting walls, in uncovered cement, the
lattice-work imposed by the caissons, as well as a large-scale use of steel and
other materials, highlight the peculiarity of the existing structures and, at
the same time, announce the contemporary intervention: this prevents a mimetic
relationship with the old structures. The area of the operation consists of two
buildings, destined by the project to be temporary student residences and
communal areas.