Msc Thesis booklet 02c

02 .c

Courtyard Patterns Milano Sanne de Vries Tutor: Nelson Mota Msc Graduation Studio ExploreLab 19 TU Delft Faculty of Architecture 2015

Corso di Porta Ticinese Porta Ticinese

Milano, Italy

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01. CHURCH AND PIAZZA

The dense old Milanese neighbourhood is perforated by open urban spaces.

Often it exists of a piazza that forms the entrance to a church. They are lively places with surrounding seating spots.

02. ARCHES EVERYWHERE

Arches are a common feature in framing urban life. they emphasize differentiation of sequences of spaces, and are also often the gateways to more private areas. They are an important characteristic of the neighbourhood and of the city in general.

03. LIVELY STREET

Also the streets themselves are often filled with people - it is a ‘slow’ neighbourhood with lots of pedestrian traffic.

04. GROUND FLOOR SHOPS

The human scale of the buildings creates the perfect opportunity for shops, restaurants and cafes to be situated on the ground floor of those buildings. It would not be possible to live right on the street side of the ground floor. Now an effective mixture exists for both living and public functions.

05. PLAY OF HEIGHTS AND SETBACKS

Because the development of the housing blocks was gradual and building levels were added over time, height differences exist among the blocks.

Also, the top floor is often set back from the front facade, creating a collective or (usually) private outdoor living extension.

06. PLAYFULLNESS

As with the approach to the use of color, facades follow a certain rhythm that yet allows freedom of variation - resulting in an informal character of the facade. An important and typical feature are the shutters, sometimes opened and sometimes closed and this way contributing to the notion of playfulness.

07. PASTEL COLOR PALETTE

The use of color here can be considered as a symbol for the approach to architecture in general. Even though every building has its own distinctive color, it is carefully fitted with the surrounding variation of colors - creating endless variation on the same theme.

08. BALCONIES AND FLOWERS

An inseperable duo: balonies and flowers. Aesthetics and the need for decoration is inherent in Italian culture. Flower pots are an expression of the care that is taken for the private environment.

09. ROOF TERRACES

A prevailing feature in all of the city of Milan is the rooftop garden. From the street, glimpses can be caught of green hanging over the building edges.

This is encouraged on bigger scale because of Milan’s air quality problem.

10. COLLECTIVE STREET ENTRANCES

Each multi-family housing block (originally one-family houses) is entered through a collective entrance from the street. Behind the entrance lies a different realm that is difficult to enter for outsiders. The entrances are often highlighted with arches that are set back in the facade, emphasizing the wall’s thickness.

11. FRAMING OF BOUNDARIES

The collective is seperated from the public by a clear boundary where one has to enter a porch in order to reach the courtyard. Bundles of collective spaces are dispersed within the urban block and connected by porches cutting through the building structure.

1 2 . H A L F E N C L O S E D V E R T I C A L C I R C U LA T I O N

To prevent the vertical circulation from becoming a deprived space, it is encaptured inside the building but opened up on one side. Important is also the circular setup of the stairs, with four platforms through each level.

These platforms allow for appropriation and extension of private ground; a zone where private and collective collide.

13. GALLERY AND BALCONY COMBINED

One of the most distinctive features of the traditional Milanese residential courtyard is the gallery that functions simultaneously as a balcony. This way again spaces are created where private and collective collide, creating a lively boundary between the building and the courtyard.

14. GREEN DEMARCATION

The inner courtyards are often an oasis of green. It is used mostly in an aesthetic way, and as the picture illustrates it can be used to form a (mental) boundary between spaces.

15. NICHES

Sometimes larger private outdoor spaces ar created, often in the form of a niche in the facade. Again, plants and flower pots decorate these spaces.

16. CORNERS

Corners provide room for ambiguity, a space where use feels comfortable through its level of protection and shelter.