Farmhouse revamp - Oderzo
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Farmhouse revamp - Oderzo

EXiT architetti associati

Farmhouse revamp - Oderzo
By Francesco Pagliari -
This large 19th-century farmhouse was originally designed as the hub for running the estate and so it was essential the refurbishment and alterations turned it into a large home. It was critical to rediscover the architectural sense of the living space. The key points in the house needed to be identified and then its intrinsic qualities had to be enhanced, adding modern technological comforts and delicately, but coherently using an interpretation based on the notion that contemporary projects can add architectural value.
The original building was made up of a series of linear sections grouped together and then divided according to function - the three-storey house, storage area, barn and stables. Delving into the refurbishment project is like reading the history of the transformations that, linked to use, at times negated key architectural features. Over the years, both major and minor work was done on the building, but this tended to reduce the quality and functionality of the original farmhouse architecture, requiring the new project to resolve this issue. In practice, this boiled down to focusing on the size of the rooms, extending the living areas and creating an open correlation between different spaces. For example, on the ground floor, the living and dining rooms and the kitchen are visually and physically connected with elegant fluidity, without adding barriers along the corridor running down the longitudinal wall. On the middle floor, the sleeping area is divided into individual rooms, but on the attic level, the spaces once again become very large, allowing the wooden trussed roof to become a main feature. The adjacent section, once used as stables, was turned into a large living room with a mezzanine floor, to provide additional space for the main residence. The wood used to clad sections of the walls, for the upper-storey floors and as a structural element is an ever-present element internally, accompanying the imposing structure of exposed steel beams that is clearly visible inside the building.
The farmhouse's original layout was restored and enhanced in the refurbishment project, foregrounding the house's noble features. For example, the variously-sized arches in the residential building and the stables were restored, freeing them from where they had been enclosed in the walls. The glazing in the arches opens up the view and creates a physical connection between the exterior and interior that is picked up in the combination of travertine flooring on the ground floor with the coloured concrete slabs used for the external perimeter of the building. Framing the arches with stainless steel profiles is another detail that helps add character. Finally, the restoration of the external chimney is a key element of the refurbishment as it is an imposing feature outside, but becomes quite a compact, cosy space once inside.
The design also improved the energy consumption and air conditioning, in keeping with the contemporary side of the interpretation. A photovoltaic installation has been fully integrated into the roof, further improving the building’s energy performance, while the heat-pump based cooling and heating system based guarantees efficiency and a comfortable climate.

Francesco Pagliari

Location: Oderzo, Treviso
Client: Private
Completion: 2011
Gross Floor Area: 1200 m2
Architects: EXiT architetti associati - Francesco Loschi, Giuseppe Pagano, Paolo Panetto
Works Management: Francesco Loschi

Consultants
Structural: Alberto Soligo
Plant: Mauro Benozzi

Photography: © Silvia Longhi

EXiT Architetti Associati
EXiT Architetti Associati, an architecture studio based in Treviso, was established by architects Francis Loschi (born in 1977 in Treviso), Giuseppe Pagano (1977, Brescia) and Paul Panetta (1977, Treviso). It focuses on architectural and urban design, interior and landscape architecture, combining the professional and design experience of the three partners in Italy, Spain and Portugal.
Since 2004, EXIT has participated in a number of international competitions. It won first prize at the international workshop QUAP 2006 - Qualità Urbanisitca delle Aree Produttive, organized by the Province of Treviso and Unindustria Treviso, while in 2008 it won third prize in a competition for the restoration of a polygonal bastion of the castle in the city of Treviso.
Since 2009 it has been a member of the ANAB (Associazione Nazionale Architettura Bioecologica).
In 2010 it was selected by GiARCH (Coordinamento Nazionale dei Giovani Architetti Italiani) for inclusion in the publication Progetti di giovani architetti italiani (Projects by young Italian architects). In September 2010, projects by the studio were displayed at the exhibition of young Italian architects Ventisettetrentasette in the Italian Pavilion at the Shanghai EXPO 2010.
In November 2010 it won the Residential and Social Housing category in the City of Oderzo Architecture Prize for its restoration of a traditional farm building in Selva di Cadore, and it was a finalist in the Refurbishment category of the ‘Archdaily Building of the Year 2010’ award. In 2011 it won the Barbara Capocchin award in the Provincial category. Projects by EDiT have been featured in respected Italian and international journals, including Wallpaper *, Mark, C3, A10, AND, Domusweb, Il giornale dell’architettura and L’Arca.

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