Bruno Stocco Architetto: GaMa House in Santa Giustina in Colle
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GaMa House in Santa Giustina in Colle

Bruno Stocco Architetto

Bruno Stocco Architetto: GaMa House in Santa Giustina in Colle
By Francesco Pagliari -

This old, ruined farmhouse in the countryside near Padua was revamped in a complex regeneration and extension project. The result was double-storey house with an extensive roof and highly refined architecture. Recovering materials lies at the heart of this project in an effort to ensure continuity between the old building and the current one. The use of large and small wooden beams, bricks, stone slabs, and restored wooden doors for the interiors all added to the knowledge of how materials can be reused, creating combinations in which new and old materials are used for the finishings and the extensions created with infill walls and weatherproofing. The essence of this "recovery and extension" project was to reread the whole by defining modules for the layout and the upper floor of the existing building to allow the definition of a "rule" that can be used to ensure the extension is done in full compliance with the existing proportions and volumes.
The old building was first recorded in a 19th century land registry and it is characterised by a rounded entrance arch on the southern side that definitely has old world architectural charm. The arch is once again given the role of being a key element, forming the central feature of the façade that defines the nature of the extension to the old elevation.It is a unifying element, but maintains is courtly feel, becoming a "glazed portal flooded with light" that connects the ground floor to the first floor. This allows light deep into the house, into the living areas on both floors that are so central to the internal organisation, places to relax or study. To the sides of the sitting room on the ground floor lie ancillary and utility rooms, with the porches to the south and north that fill the volume of the building and create sheltered points of transition between indoors and outdoors. On the upper floor, on the western side of the house in the extension, there are two ensuite bedrooms, while on the eastern side, there is another bedroom and the vertical connections - a lift and a light iron and wooden staircase that almost seems to be poked into a corner.The connections between the recovered and transformed parts are evident on the external elevations. The southern façade clearly reveals the coexistence of the restored brick walls, which are left bare, the transformation of the arch into a "glazed portal", and the creation of a contemporary plastered wall partition that defines the porch area. On the western façade, the separation of elements shows the different parts. On the one side, a honeycomb wall has been restored with old recovered bricks - and continues onto the northern side, emphasising the rural nature of the house - while the other visible wall, on the upper floor where two bedrooms are, is clearly a contemporary structure.The new wall meets modern insulation requirements, but it is also well integrated into the overall rhythm and proportions of the edifice, especially as it is slightly recessed compared to the honeycomb brick wall. The final defining feature of this wall is the spaced steel bars, in an oxidized colour, that are connected to cylinders welded to a plate behind the outer shell. These steel profiles create partitions along the walls, where there are tall and narrow windows and plastered sections in a non-sequential sequence. The designers have combined a contemporary feel and restoration, using recovered materials, proportions, similarities and differences to define sophisticated spaces and living styles.

Francesco Pagliari  

Location: S. Giustina in Colle (PD)
Client: GAMA - S. Giustina in Colle (PD)
Completion: 2014
Gross Floor Area: 205 m2
Architects: Bruno Stocco Architetto
Design Team: Valentina Cadamuro, Beatrice Borghi
Works Management: Bruno Stocco Architetto
Contractor: Impresa Edile Squizzato Cristian & C., Impresa Costruzioni Edili Salvalajo Giuseppe

Consultants
Structural and Technical Systems: Guglielmo Tolio

Suppliers
Door and Window Frames: Falegnameria Roncato
Plant and equipment: Emme Emmeimpianti 
Electrical installations: Scolaro Impianti 
Gypsum board structures:​ Rem Finiture 
Painting​: Stocco Luciano
Metalwork: Carpenteria Gambarotto Pierluigi


Bruno Stocco Architetto
Bruno Stocco was born in Camposampiero (Padua), where he operates his practice today. After completing his secondary education at the Pietro Selvatico school for the visual and design arts, he graduated in architecture from the IUAV in Venice in 1980, where he studied with Carlo Scarpa. His thesis, supervised by Valeriano Pastor, dealt with Padua’s Prato della Valle square. 
His professional career has included ongoing participation in conferences and discussions about land conservation, the publication of articles, and the study of the ancient and sacred architecture of Padua’s hinterland. Highlights include La tradizione e la cultura della casa nell'alto padovano (The tradition and culture of the house in the Alto Padovano area), with a forward by Mario Botta. A key focus of Stocco’s work is the restoration of classified historic buildings, which he performs in collaboration with the relative authorities. On behalf of the Padua Order of Architects, he has also supervised courses in restoration, including the setting up of workshops.
Stocco’s work has been featured in numerous articles and journals, including, Il restauro della Cattedrale di Padova (The restoration of Padua Cathedral – published by Skira), a project that earned a mention in the Marble Architectural Award 2000 Italy for the restoration of the presbytery, and in the Vicenza-based Koine award prize for the design of the pews; La Fornace Morandi di Padova, processo di restauro e metodologia di recupero (Padua’s Morandi factory: the restoration process and methods), which was a finalist in the 2012 Brik Award; Panorama Italiano n. 2 (published by The Plan) has featured two of his designs, which also appeared in the books Novecento Architetture e Città del Veneto (20th century architecture and the cities of Veneto) and PIRUEA nel Veneto (Integrated urban, building and environmental redevelopment programmes in the Veneto Region), both published by the Veneto Region.

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