1. Introduction

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1 INTRODUCTION

“Isolated, on a hillock beyond the Scrivia, Vocemola preserves more than other localities aspects and flavors of the country, with the compact village around the church, the old repainted houses, the alleys, and, at a very short distance, mountains and woods.”

“Appartata, su un poggio oltre lo Scrivia, Vocemola conserva più di altre località aspetti e sapori di paese, con il borgo compatto attorno alla chiesa, le vecchie case ridipinte, i vicoletti, e, a brevissima distanza, monti e boschi.”

(Comune di Arquata Scrivia, n.d.)

Introduction

The town of Vocemola is part of Arquata Scrivia, a town in the province of Alessandria. “Appartata” which means isolated in English, is the first word used by the municipality of Arquata Scrivia when describing Vocemola.

“Appartata”, due to its distance from the capital of the municipality to which it belongs.

“Appartata”, for its complicated access.

“Appartata”, due to its separation from the landscape due to the highway.

When passing through the service area of the A7 motorway in the Scrivia Valley, the eastern part of Vocemola can be slightly perceived, while the rest of the town is hidden by the lower level of the topography with respect to the motorway. The presence of the highway has made Vocemola an isolated and dead-end destination. The people who will drive to it are currently only residents, as there is no other event that attracts external users to visit or just pass through the town of Vocemola.

The obstruction of the highway, together with the migration, has exposed the fragility of the territory. Understanding this fragility as “the quality of being easy to break” (Cambridge Dictionary), this project intends to reinforce the activity of the territory, thus combating a possible “breakdown” of the place.

In order to achieve the goal, the strengths and weaknesses of the site were analyzed to determine the appropriate tools that would generate a positive transformation in the site.

In the first place, Vocemola Service Area, along with the highway it serves, are determined as a weakness for its monotony and monodirectionality. Furthermore, the service area which can just exist as a wider extension of the motorway in form of platform, contributes to territorial fragility as it is a space without any identity that can be compared to a non-place, where travelers only stop momentarily to refill gasoline.

On the other hand, the natural context that surrounds the highway represents an opportunity factor for the reactivation of these fragile territories, taking into account the preference that many people currently have towards visiting nature in the face of significant urban growth. In the case of the A7 motorway, the natural context around it offers a landscape sequence, as the road climbs, descends and crosses different valleys. In the closest area next to the highway the natural context is flatter and mostly used for agricultural purposes, as it moves away from the highway the topography rises, becoming a potential natural area to explore but currently underused for recreational purposes due to its difficult access. Based on the above, this project proposes to use the weaknesses as opportunities and take advantage of the existing strengths. In order to do this, the service area platform will be used, as the articulator between Vocemola, the highway and the orography, transforming the non-place into a place to visit and stay, attractive and accessible to external users (travelers of the A7 Motorway) and internal users (residents from Vocemola and Arquata Scrivia), taking the great potential of the natural context as a possible role of landscape tourism in the reactivation of the town of Vocemola and its surroundings.

Rest and Walk

To achieve this, the built footpath will be used as the dynamic connector between Vocemola, the service area and the landscape, facilitating access to the user and offering an experience by walking. Starting from Vocemola the built footpath which gives continuity to the existing path, now blocked by the highway. Then, by crossing transversally the motorway, will connect Vocemola with the lanscape. And finally, will go into the mountain in order to explore it. Additionally, through open space architecture, different type of interventions are proposed in form of terraces and platforms providing more identity to the site and designed for resting, allowing the user greater proximity to the natural context and its contemplation in the pause.