The new university buildings rise on the site of the old Italgas plant near the centre of Turin, along the River Dora Riparia. This campus is for the law and political science faculties, along with a vast library comprising five older library sections. The teaching rooms and laboratories are flanked by an admin centre, the reception area and food hall, giving the complex a truly contemporary university feel. The design is complex and articulated. In perhaps overly simply terms, it has a roughly triangular shape, where the internal open spaces, crossed by paved walkways and marked by trees and lawns, are a defining feature. The circular central area is a place to meet, relax, chat or simply to cross on the way to another building. The complex is also very open to the outside, permeable in numerous directions. Covered walkways link the buildings from the first floor up, leaving the ground floor connection routes open. The library is housed in three buildings along the River Dora, while the other complex of four buildings - faculty offices and classrooms - is more central. The unity of this entire complex is ensured by the architecture, despite the presence of two faculties and numerous different uses. The elevations are clearly and precisely related, divided into different floors by the ribbon windows that run right along the perimeter and the curved lines the lead off decisively from the points of the triangle. Externally, panels made of curved and painted aluminium mark the different floors, increasing the horizontal movement. The materials are in different hues of grey and silver, while the glazed panes have various degrees of transparency. The roof is the symbolic and functional reference point for the entire complex. A netlike structure of beams and arches supports the actual roof made of a waterproof fibreglass membrane lined with Teflon that is both highly durable and weather resistant. The roof extends across all seven buildings, producing symbolic unity and dominating the overall image. It juts out beyond all the elevations, providing a cunning technical solution to ensure a superb balance between sun and shade throughout the year. Internally, the living and visual comfort levels are such that writing desks can be placed right next to the glazed sections. The complex as a whole has two main sections, each given equal architectural importance through the use of a round, full-height central section that is flooded with magical light from above. In the library, the metal stairs with transparent banisters rise up with daring elegance in the middle of the space. In the faculty atriums, the stairs follow the circular flow of the perimeter, turning this space into a place where art and communication can enter into fruitful dialogue. Environmental-friendliness is at the heart of nearly every design decision, from the overhanging roof to protect the glazed walls, to the use of certified or fast-growing trees for wood panelling and floors. The external photocatalytic paving uses sunlight to neutralise hydrocarbon molecules. Finally, integrated systems ensure indoor comfort and reduce the costs for treating the air and lighting, with knock-on energy savings.
Francesco Pagliari