UGO FORNO PAVILION SMALL ACTS : UGO FORNO PAVILION The Ugo Forno Pavilion is an answer to how we can re-use, re-appropriate and re-present the painful heritage of World War II in Italy, by going beyond traditional approaches of commemoration. The aim is to re-inscribe the marginal story of Ugo Forno into the contemporary historical, cultural and social landscape by re-inserting it into everyday life. Following Ugo’s example, this proposal is based on Small Acts which everyone can perform in order to contribute to community life, taking responsibility and owner- ship for their environment. This is achieved with the community’s active involvement and participation, generating not only a recalling of lost memories of resistance but creating templates for civil action; aiding in creating a more equal and just contemporary society. Human interaction will be used to engage with memories of this difficult past.
THE STORY Ugo Forno was a 12 year old boy who lived in Via Nemorense 15, a middle-class suburb of Rome. On the morning of June 5th 1944, the day after the official arrival of the Allies in Rome, Ugo leaves the house saying he is going out to play. He goes to the central square of the neighbourhood and hears that the Americans are arriving to liberate that area of the city. Ugo learns that a group of Nazi engineers are planning to blow up the railway bridge over the river, which is the main route for the Allied entry in Rome. Ugo convinces some older youths to join him to prevent the Nazis blowing up the bridge. This small group of improvised resistance fighters prevent the Germans from blowing up the bridge. As they retreat, however, the Nazis retaliate by firing three mortar rounds at the young partisans resulting in a direct hit on the head of young Ugo. He dies instantly. Ugo Forno is the last to fall in the battle for the liberation of Rome.
Because the contemporary cultural landscape is characterised by its dynamism, temporality and changing social perceptions, the Ugo Forno Pavilion is a temporary ‘monument’, acting as a place of memory and lived experience. This monument is comprised of two structures, one fixed and the other mobile, where learning, teaching, socialising and the exercising of civic duties will unfold through the community’s active participation.
Today, the memory of Ugo Forno and his heroic act is almost forgotten. Ugo’s story is exemplary of how a single action, a small act can change the course of history. Ugo Forno’s individual act of resistance stemmed from an urgent need to oppose the current state of affairs by choosing to pursue active participation.
Sites Although all these sites indicate that there is a strong material culture related to Ugo Forno’s story, after our research we concluded that there is little or no social memory of the event. When interviewing the local community, not one person had heard of Ugo’s story. Based on this we can also conclude that the traditional memorialisation strategies, i.e. plaques, are not an effective strategy of remembrance and in keeping the story alive in people’s memories. According to our experience people respond better to strategies which involve human interaction. By creating moments and opportunities for human interaction we will not only be able to create personal memories for each individual involved, but also make an imprint of Ugo’s story in their personal lexicon.
Railway Bridge over the Aniene River
Garden between via Pietro Mascagni and via Luigi Mancinelli
Parque Virgiliano Ugo’s house
Collaborative Work : Target audience / Collaborators The main collaborators in this project are the students and teachers at the Luigi Settembrini School, which Ugo Forno attended. Involving the school in the conception of the project means that the teachers, students, parents and staff will be invested in its development, therefore taking ownership and responsibility for the continuation of the memory.
Luigi Settembrini School
Convey the story of Ugo Forno in a meaningful way in order to create a memory imprint into the community’s collective imagination.
AIMS
Draw new audiences to ‘difficult heritage’. Link the story to the present time in order to make it relevant to younger generations and contemporary society. Generate a sense of belonging, responsibility and civic duty in the community.
The school already has a material, human and social structure in place. It also has established links with other schools in the country and abroad resulting in several exchange projects. This allows for Ugo Forno’s story to be disseminated far and wide. The curricular and extra-curricular activities in the school will be used and developed as strategies of remembrance.
Small interventions and events
Children are a demographic that are able to have a greater impact on the wider community, such as parents, grand- parents, teachers and friends.
To draw new audiences to ‘difficult heritage’, a series of small interventions and events will take place around the city. These take place around special dates related to Ugo Forno such as 5th June, the anniversary of Ugo’s death and the 16th October, the date that many Jews in Rome faced deportation during World War II.
Each year there is a renewal of collaborators with the enrolment of new students at the school.
This strategy is vital in disseminating the story of Ugo Forno not only to the local community but also further afield.
APPROACH
This engagement process will also facilitate our team to uncover other people’s memories of ‘resistance’, adding a multitude of layers and depth to the project.
Active Learning Active learning is learning which engages and challenges children and young people’s thinking using real-life and im- aginary situations. It takes full advantage of the opportuni- ties presented by: spontaneous play; planned, purposeful play; investigating and exploring; events and life experiences; focused learning and teaching. As suggested by delegatesof a Curriculum for Excellence conference, children learn by doing, thinking, exploring; through quality interaction, inter- vention and relationships founded on children’s interests and abilities across a variety of contexts. All combine to build the four capacities for each child.
Environment used and lead by the community In consultation with the children we learnt that there are many things they feel that are missing in the school. These are either resources or activities such as cooking classes; field trips; school camps; laboritories; a large gym; interactive blackboards, and a computer science lab. This project will not only provide a site of remembrance for Ugo Forno but also a place where the needs of the target au- dience will be met.
Active learning can support learners’ development of the four capacities in many ways. They can develop as: Successful learners, Confident Individuals Responsible citizens, and Effective contributors
UGO FORNO PAVILION
UGO FORNO PAVILLION This pavilion is a temporary fixed structure placed outdoors within the Luigi Settembrini school’s internal patio, opposite to the school’s small allotment. It is a self-sustained building made of recycled materials with three floors each containing a multi-purpose space. The colour scheme is inspired by the school’s logo. This pavilion offers an environment of challenge and differential play. Here active learning will be put into practice by teaching the students through play and fun.
Ground floor - Ugo’s Kitchen (Science/ Chemistry/Biology lab)
Middle floor- ‘UgoFM.com’ Internet Radio/ Writing/ Study/ Social
The ground floor is designed to fulfil children’s wishes for cooking classes and also as an extension of the school’s newly established allotment. The allotment and the kitchen are great environments for active learning. Basic social skills, self-sufficiency, problem solving, risk-assessment, enterprising behaviour, responsibility and action/consequence are a few of the lessons that can be learnt from it.
The school radio was inspired by the importance of communication within the wartime period, through printed media and broadcast radio, which can be linked to the school’s already established extra- curricular activity - Journalism. The radio station will be a suitable, easy and cost effective addition to the students’ skills set and a way to disseminate Ugo’s story.
This section of the building was inspired by the ‘Orti di Guerra’, which sprung up in Rome during the war. This was a widespread reality for many other countries, which shows us that the effects of World War II are a shared heritage. Food was scarce and com- munities took matters into their own hands. The allotments made people come closer together with shared responsibilities, allowing them to take ownership over their lives and sustainability during this uncertain time even if for brief moments. It also gave them a sense of hope and pride, which helped to alleviate the burden of war.
Top floor- plant nursery/herbs garden This top floor works as an extension of the existing allotment and it will function as a plant nursery where children can sprout seeds before transplanting them to the big allotment.
UGO FORNO PAVILION UGO FORNO Pavilion Energy System and Uses
The UGO FORNO Pavilion will be completely energy efficient. It will use photovoltaic solar panels to generate electricity to run all the equipment it contains and it will have a rain water collection system to create drinking water and water for cooking and clean- ing, at the same time feeding the vegetable patch, flower boxes and botanic cells. Although the Pavilion relies on the school’s external staircase for structural support, it will not need to use any of the school’s energy resources. The aim of this is so it can act independently and so demonstrates how small acts, like collecting rain, can have bigger impact on the surrounding environment and its inhabitants.
Water
Electricity
Botanic Cells They contain layers of soil, sand and gravel that act as a filter for the water and the perfect base for growing plants and vegetables. These units also act as a treatment process for the rainwater and used water from the Pavilion (grey water). This is a natural process done by the plants in the cells via filtration, oxygenation and encountering friendly bacteria which all play a part in cleansing the once used water.
How the Photovoltaic Solar Panels work Photovoltaic Solar Panels convert sunlight into electricity at the atomic level. The panels contain semi- conductive materials that can absorb photons of light and are specially treated to form an electric field, positive on one side and negative on the other. When sunlight hits the solar cell, electrons are knocked loose from the atoms in the semiconductor material. Electrical conductors are attached to the positive and negative sides, forming an electrical circuit. The electrons can be captured in the form of an electric current. The electricity is then stored in a battery and can be used to power the electrical sockets and equipment in the Pavilion.
How the UVGI Filter works The UVGI system is designed to expose water to germicidal UV light which is mutagenic to bacteria, viruses and other micro-organisms and breaks down their molecular bonds, destroying them or rendering them harmless. This process is similar to the way UV light can give humans sunburn. As bacteria has less protection to UV than we do, it cannot survive the exposure it receives inside the treatment unit. The unit is made from stainless steel so the UV light cannot escape and maximises its effectiveness.
UGO FORNO MOBILEPAVILION UGO FORNO MOBILE PAVILLION The Ugo Forno mobile pavilion is a multi-purpose tent that can be placed in any outdoor location ac- companying children on public interventions, performances, and events. These events will be an effective strategy to disseminate Ugo’s story and example to the wider community. Children will be able to do this by using methods they learn in the school’s extra-curricular activities, such as Drama, Performance, Music. This structure, when not in use for performances and activities related to Ugo Forno, can be used as a mobile classroom.
Examples of Events Event 1: 16th October The 16th of October is a significant remembrance date in Rome related to the memory of World War II. On this date the local Jewish population were rounded up en masse for deportation to Auschwitz and Dachau. Remembrance events happen all over the city on this date. For this date it is important to remember the atrocities of deportation and also to speak up regarding human rights infringements at the present time. This is an extremely formative exercise as it is important that children become aware of the struggles facing our contemporary society. As stated by Fabrizio For- no, it is important that children recognise the disparity of contexts lived in different parts of the world. The more privileged societies have the duty to recognise their status and more importantly draw attention to the atrocities committed around the globe. In doing this, children can become better citizens, following Ugo’s example of taking up ownership and responsibility by speaking up. This performance will take inspiration from the Theatre of the Oppressed, a theatrical form that Augusto Boal developed in the 1960s. Boal’s techniques uses theatre as a means of promoting social and political change. In the Theatre of the Oppressed, the audience becomes active, such that as “spect-actors” they explore, show, analyse and transform the reality in which they are living. Description: Location: Square in town centre or train station Action: A child approaches an adult and asks per- mission to share a secret with him/ her. If the adult agrees the child will quote a true testimony from a child soldier who lives in another country. After this, the child will hand a leaflet to the adult, which contains an explanation of Ugo Forno’s story and the Ugo Forno Pavilion. The child walks away. Several children will perform this action simultaneously.
Quotes’ examples: “I was working on the farm and heard that soldiers were coming, so my father told me to hide. But I was caught. The soldiers tied me and beat me and took me to a barracks in Lofa County. There were many small boys in Lofa, more than adults. Many were killed by bullets and rockets. They gave me an arm and told me how to use it...I used an AK 47; the adults used RPGs and other big weapons. I fired the gun but am not sure if I killed people. On the road enemy soldiers came and I tried to run away but a rocket hit my leg. Four people were wounded and some others died in the attack. Government soldiers came and took me to the Phebe hospital. After a week and two days an ambulance from JFK hospital came to pick me up. At JFK they amputated my leg. The soldiers gave me a little money while I was in hospital so I paid my way to come to ‘Titanic’, a centre housing former government militia, from JFK. I want to go to school and start a small business.” (JK, a 14 year old boy from Bong County, Liberia, was captured by former government forces in June 2003. Al Report: Liberia: The promises of peace for 21,000 child soldiers)
Event 2: 5th June The 5th of June is the date of Ugo Forno’s death. Usually the school has the end of the year party for the children on the 6th of June. We propose to merge these events and have a single celebration of the 5th of June. This event is inspired by the contemporary Smart Mobs. Smart Mobs are a variation on the Flashmobs phenomena where a group of people assemble suddenly in a public space, perform an unusual and seemingly pointless act for a brief time, then quickly disperse, often for the purposes of entertainment, satire, and artistic expression. Smart Mobs have the specific intention of conveying political messages and are used as a tool for social activism. Description: Location: Parco Virgiliano, park situated near Ugo’s House and School Action: Musical Smart Mob and Picnic. Children play musical instruments as an extra-curricular activity at the school, such as the piano, violin and guitar. They will put these skills to the test by performing an expected concert for the local community, parents and teachers in the park. Once they finish playing children will hand out leaflets to park users with information about the Ugo Forno Story and Pavilion. This action is a small act that will allow children to practice Ugo’s example of considering and caring for the welfare of its own community. Providing a moment of unexpected pleasure for others is an important exercise of civic duty. After the performance, children, teachers and parents will gather around the park and have a picnic as a celebration of Ugo Forno and of the end of school year.
“They took us as wives straightaway. We had to cook for them. If a cow was killed, we had to cook it...When they came back, they would eat and drink, then they would call for you. They were so many. It was so painful...If they went to attack somewhere or to loot, there was always someone who stayed behind. Then he’d call you. If you refused, they used sticks to whip you...We mostly stayed in the forest but sometimes we had to go with them and carry what they looted... They all had sex with me. I don’t know how many people had sex with me. A man would come, then another and another. I wasn’t even the youngest. Some girls were even younger than me. Even the com- manders called for you. You couldn’t refuse... They said they’d kill you if you ran away. Some people fled and didn’t come back. We didn’t know if they’d got away or had been killed.” (Following an attack on her colline in Gitega province, Burundi, in 2001, F., then aged 13, was forced to accompany a group of around 30 combatants