Kent State University, Florence Program | CAED - Most Inspiring Students' Projects (Spring 2017)

KSU FLORENCE CAED

Most Inspiring Students’ Projects SPRING 2017

KENT STATE UNIVERSITY | FLORENCE PROGRAM \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE AND ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

KSU FLORENCE CAED

Most Inspiring Students’ Projects SPRING 2017

Most Inspiring Students’ Projects

Index Introduction . 06 (Fabrizio Ricciardelli and Paola Giaconia) Presentation of architecture studio projects . 10 (Filippo Caprioglio, Enzo Fontana, Alberto Francini, Paola Giaconia, Andrea Ponsi) Hannah Abate, Breakthrough . 16 Alysa Lovich, Submerge . 18 William Mann, Nuovo Centro Civico . 20 Kang Qian, Beacon Piazza . 22 Alex Sanchez, Redefining the Wall . 24 Brandon Sanchez, Urban Catalyst . 26 Khue Trinh, Vertical Square . 28 Isaac Wimer, Shifting Spaces . 30 Presentation of interior design studio projects .

(Fabio Barluzzi, Federico Grazzini) Emily Beck, Light . 38 Andrea Nagy, Museum of Culinary Art . 40 Stephanie Nardi, Bloom . 42 Emily Schwager, Museo Genocidio Armeno .

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Most Inspiring Students’ Projects

Introduction

FABRIZIO RICCIARDELLI, KSU-FLORENCE DIRECTOR

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When the end of the semester comes, I am always fascinated at seeing Architecture and Interior Design students, busy in preparing their studios’ final presentations. The energy and enthusiasm they put in their work is well documented in this little booklet which collects the most inspiring students’ projects of the Spring 2017 semester. This publication series, which was started by prof. Paola Giaconia in Spring 2013, in the course of the years will provide important documentation of the activity of KSU-Florence Program in Architecture and in Interior Design.

The studio projects were quite challenging for our students, both sites being possessing some very special qualities: Architecture studios), a small town of Etruscan origins dating back to the 8th century BC, offers an especially beautiful built environment and natural landscape; Design studios) is a very grand prototype of medieval architecture and was the seat of the City Council in the decade when Florence was capital of Italy.

As director of the school, I am also very intrigued seeing students’ explorations and design proposals for our city and for Tuscany.

Their restless explorations result in lively

discussions on the occasion of midterm and final reviews.

I especially commend the students whose project is featured in these pages. They all demonstrated high commitment to their work. I am sure that absorbing the vitality of Florence’s art and culture during this semester has been especially beneficial for them all.

Finally, I congratulate their professors (prof.

Filippo Caprioglio, prof. Enzo Fontana, prof.

Alberto Francini, prof. Paola Giaconia, prof.

Andrea Ponsi, prof. Fabio Barluzzi and prof.

Federico Grazzini), whose intellectual and artistic abilities I am very aware of. I know well what each of them had to offer to our younger generation of designers. A special note goes to Professor Paola Giaconia, whose work as coordinator of the KSU-Florence Program in Architecture and Interior Design is invaluable.

Thank you all for your intense work!

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This booklet collects the studio projects of the students awarded in the “Most Inspiring Student Project” competition that launched in the Spring 2017 semester.

This is a recognition that, as coordinator for the Architecture and Interior Design program at KSU Florence, I deem especially important.

First, because it constantly documents the growth and evolution of our didactic program. Secondly, because it enhances a dialogue among students and challenges them individually, while also reminding them of the experiences and abilities of their own colleagues.

In particular, the competition was open to all students of Architecture and Interior Design studios of Kent State University, Florence Program. It celebrated emerging student talent by awarding the top student work.

We evaluated a very varied array of design proposals (on two different sites - Magliano in Toscana and Palazzo Spini Feroni- and with different design programs - a civic center and a museum for the visual arts) which represent, overall, a testimony of this semester’s activity.

A jury composed by KSU-Florence design studio faculty and faculty from the main campus (prof. Kathryn Strand, prof. David Thal, prof. Brett Tippey, and prof. Terrence Uber) selected two projects per studio as the winners.

The top projects were selected based on:

8 merit awards were issued to these Architecture students:

4 merit award was issued to these Interior Design students:

PAOLA GIACONIA, KSU-F ARCHITECTURE AND INTERIOR DESIGN PROGRAM COORDINATOR

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A commencement ceremony was held at Palazzo Vettori on Thursday May 11, 2017, on the occasion of the end-of-semester school reception.

Winners were awarded with the publication of their project in this booklet. Also, the winning entries were displayed on boards at the end-of-semester school reception.

Winners were given a certificate, in the presence of arch. Egidio Raimondi, President of the Association of Architects of the Province of Florence, and of arch.

Tommaso Rossi Fioravanti, President of the Fondazione Architetti Firenze; prof. Fabrizio Ricciardelli, director at KSU Florence; prof. Paola Giaconia, coordinator for the Architecture and Interior Design programs at KSU Florence.

As a series, these booklets represent a comprehensive trajectory of the school’s design work and pedagogical identity developed at Kent State University, Florence program. They reflect the students’ educational experience during their semester abroad and together they aspire to gauge the progress the school has made in the course of the years.

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Most Inspiring Students’ Projects

Presentation of architecture studio projects

FILIPPO CAPRIOGLIO, ENZO FONTANA, ALBERTO FRANCINI, PAOLA GIACONIA, ANDREA PONSI

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The area of study of the Architecture Design Studio is the relationship between a building and its context. In particular, students were challenged with the task of conceiving an architectural intervention that bears significant urban implications. The project dealt with the re-organization of a portion of the urban fabric of the hill town of Magliano in Toscana through a new connection between the parking area and the historic center and the design of a new Civic Center.

The students learnt to recognize and interpret the special character and quality of this place, that is characterized by an ideal relationship between built environment and natural landscape. Magliano in Toscana is, in fact, an example of a successful integration of environmental sustainability and the preservation of the well being and the identity of its population.

Under the guidance of professors Filippo Caprioglio, Enzo Fontana, Alberto Francini, Paola Giaconia and Andrea Ponsi, the students worked on the design of a new Civic Center of about 1.000 square meters, connecting Via Garibaldi, the town’s main street, with the newly built road at the foot of the old city walls.

Magliano in Toscana has Etruscan origins dating back to the 8th century BC; later it became a Roman municipality keeping the Etruscan name of Heba. In the year 1097 for the first time it was referred to as the town of Magliano, center of the Aldobrandeschi family court. The city is surrounded by walls, one of the most complete fortifications of the Maremma region, that were built between the 13th and 15th century.

The project site and its program offered the students an opportunity to focus their attention on issues related to construction in historical contexts as dealt with by contemporary architectural culture.

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Students’ Projects Architecture

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Breakthrough HANNAH ABATE

prof. Paola Giaconia’s studio

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Submerge

ALYSA LOVICH

prof. Paola Giaconia’s studio

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Nuovo Centro Civico WILLIAM MANN

prof. Filippo Caprioglio’s studio

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Beacon Piazza KANG QIAN

prof. Andrea Ponsi’s studio

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Redefining the Wall ALEX SANCHEZ

prof. Alberto Francini and Enzo Fontana’s studio

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Urban Catalyst

BRANDON SANCHEZ

prof. Alberto Francini and Enzo Fontana’s studio

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Vertical Square KHUE TRINH

prof. Andrea Ponsi’s studio

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Shifting Spaces ISAAC WIMER

prof. Fabrizio Caprioglio’s studio

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Most Inspiring Students’ Projects

Presentation of interior design studio projects

FABIO BARLUZZI, FEDERICO GRAZZINI

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The main Interior design project for the 2017 Spring semester has been centred on the adaptation of a historic Florentine Palace, Palazzo Spini-Feroni, into a Museum for the Visual Arts.

One important characteristic of this site is that the building is located within walking distance of the school and it’s fully accessible, at least in the parts which the students were asked to intervene on. During the first site visit students had the chance to experience and familiarise themselves with the typical features and irregular plan layout of the medieval/renaissance urban fabric of Florence’s city centre.

In the first two-staged research and analysis phase, students have tried to read out the plan of the building highlighting the various elements belonging to different epochs and comparing them with similar precedents.

Subsequently they have carried out a detailed analysis of at least three contemporary examples of museums located in a similar historical context.

During the Study Tours course, which runs in parallel to the Studio, students had also the chance to visit many other similar structures, both in Florence, Rome, Venice and other italian cities.

Besides the historical analysis, the definition of the collection of the museum has represented the other important part of the definition of their project. Defining their own theme and collection for the museum ensured that the museum’s spaces were designed around the selected artworks. This put the young designers in the special and interesting condition to be both the curator and the designer of their own museum.

The interplay of these two equally strong influences, the historical and the essentially contemporary nature of the museum as a cultural institution, has in a few cases led to very interesting results, but, what’s more important, has enabled all the students to elaborate a complex answer to the brief based on the threefold concepts of their instinctual reaction to the site, the historical analysis and their rational attitude as editors of their own path through the visual arts.

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Students’ Projects Interior Design

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Light

EMILY BECK

prof. Federico Grazzini’s studio

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Museum of Culinary Art ANDREA NAGY

prof. Federico Grazzini’s studio

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Bloom

STEPHANIE NARDI

prof. Fabio Barluzzi’s studio

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Museo Genocidio Armeno EMILY SCHWAGER

prof. Fabio Barluzzi’s studio