Architecture Portfolio _ IS

Architecture Portfolio

Simone Izzo EPF / SUP Architect

cover image:

‘The Data Tower’ from the master project ‘Neo-rural habitat Calanca. Architecture stories’

Architect EPF SUP master epfl bachelor supsi

Curriculum Vitae

Varese, 25 agosto 1994 adress: Via XXV Aprile 6/G 21023 Besozzo Varese, Italia

simoneizzo.ar@gmail.com +39 346 511 98 11

Work

2021 - 2022 | Felicia Lamanuzzi Architetto Architect

2018 - 2019 | PONT12 architectes Intern Architect

2016 - 2017 | GIEFFE studio Intern Architect

Education

2019 - 2021 | EPFL

Master in Architecture | Master project w. prof. Jeffrey Huang

2017 - 2018 | EPFL passerelle HES | Semester project w. prof. P. Viganò

2013 - 2016 | SUPSI Bachelor in Architecture | Diploma project w. prof. Massimo Cattaneo, Giorgio Guscetti and Emanuele Saurwein

@ San Pietro, CH

@ Lausanne, CH

@ Lugano, CH

@ Lausanne, CH

@ Lausanne, CH

@ Lugano, CH

Academic works from 2017 - 2021

1. Neo rural habitat - Calanca bioregion alternative and sustainable “existential infrastructure” project

MxD lab | prof. Jeffrey Huang e Florence Graezer-Bideau assistant Frederick Chando Kim | EPFL 2021 | w. Pietro Berta

Located in the south of the Swiss Alps, Val Calanca offers itself as a site of utmost interest where to implement and develop the “neo rural” principles resulting from the research work “Neo Rural Chronicles. Decolonizing Human Habitat”: an alpine, rural, not very fertile territory; with a climate ranging from mild to extremely harsh, where - except in very recent times - the demographic trend has always been constantly downward; contrary to the current reality and forecasts for urban areas all over the planet. “Infrastructure of existence”: the set of processes and systems that enable the functioning of a human habitat and the performance of daily life.

The idea of the “neo-rural” narrative stems from the need to conceive, on the one hand, how differently a human habitat must function in order to be considered truly sustainable (durable, resilient and ethical), and on the other hand, how “attractive” this can still be, considering ethical principles, eco-centered, of cooperation, of respect and synergy with nature, of trust in technology, etc.

Thirteen projects, intimately linked to a large Bioregional Map, explore the different dimensions and components of a “neo-rural” human habitat in Calanca (from rethinking mobility to the new circular economic system, etc.): projects that try to join narrative and science, creating scenarios of alternative functioning of the human existential infrastructure; said in less big words: how everyday life can function, be satisfying and sustainable from all points of view (human, ethical, ecological, economic, and so on).

Explore the whole project

A downscale of the final table imagined as a bioregional map in which all 13 episodes studied are summarized and at the same time everything appears connected, the complexity of the connections represents the infrastructure.

the Biancalan kites energy production system that take advantage of the existing avalanche infrastructure and Data tower where all information are available and consultable to be discussed by the population.

the Arvigo ateliers ex-industrial buildings reactivated as recycling centers where a circular economy that connects the entire valley is implemented.

The Nomadic gate that marks the entrance to the valley the Piött Markethall automated market for the outward exchange of local products.

The city of Landarenca becomes an autonomous village in which takes shape a system of local and cyclical food supply and consumption.

A portion of the model in which we see some projects of the new habi tat and some human and animal vi sitors to the virtual exhibition.

Models of the 13 Neo Rural Calanca projects represented as a virtual exhibition of neo rural infrastructure.

Humans and animals imagined as “visitors” to the park. Buildings and equipment are made at different scales, from 1:1000 to 1:500 and 1:200 all of them are 3D printed in translucent resin.

1. Neo rural habitat - Calanca bioregion

2. Neo Rural Chronicles - Decolonizing Imageries of the Human Habitat

MxD lab | prof. Jeffrey Huang e Florence Graezer-Bideau assistant Frederick Chando Kim | EPFL 2021 | w. Pietro Berta | Best Master Thesis Award 2021

It is perhaps redundant to affirm that the climate emergency and the ecological transition must be treated as priorities by the political world. It is not so obvious to remind that the contribution of the architect can be a real impulse for this cause. Starting from a radical questioning of the Western system, of the components and functioning of daily life and of the paradigm productive countryside / consuming city, this “horizontal” work engages in the conception of an alternative scenario for a possible human habitat, where a community can again be connected to its territory. The “neo-rural” dimension is based on fundamental reflections and theories such as bioregionalism and on recent works dealing with the theme of the countryside. Particular attention is paid to the use of technology, in various contexts and at different scales. The city is not condemned to apocalypse in the narrative, but set aside for a moment in order to extend the imaginaries of human habitats to the whole land area, focusing precisely on the rural world.

Read the full thesis

Photo of the book and the genre design, a photo-insertion of neo-technologies into a historical painting representing a rural environment, from the chapter 9 - Planetary anxiety

The genre designs from the chapters 7 - Celebrate the Earth 1 - Learn from Nature 11 - Before the Toast 5 - The Megiston Room 4 - New Wealth

[...] In the neo-rural habitat, a community has the opportunity to redefine its place of living in parallel with its way of life - a dual architecture of where and how. That is, ultimately, the process of building - concretely and figuratively - durability and resilience. In the city, too often solutions are devised that aim at the durability of the building without questioning the behaviour of the occupants.

Ecology is not a belief of a few environmentalists and activists or one of the many goals of politics, as unfortunately people are convinced nowadays - by repeating the usual empty slogans or buying yet another ‘100% biocompatible’ product. Ecology is the driving force, the political regime and the only ‘code’ to be followed to truly aim at the sustainability of human existence on planet Earth. The rural world offers a basis on which to find an ecological trajectory. [...]

from chronicles 6.

Urban Memories

[...] In the construction of houses, architects work sensitively, reusing, recycling, refitting, reconfiguring and reactivating. The vernacular architectural heritage, as well as the entire rural palimpsest - from shopping centres to parking areas, to industrial infrastructureare a heterogeneous base to be given a second life. ‘Specificity’ is the key to the housing project that the specialist architect is called upon to design. Habitability is made up of precise actions and experiments. Abandoned barns and shopping centres can be transformed into collective dwellings, abandoned chalets and ruined dry stone walls can be combined with skilful techniques and configured into comfortable dwellings in synergy with the local area.

Architecting the durability of the building also means mastering the construction process: from the choice of material to treatment, maintenance and recycling. Between phalansteries (for ‘urban’ density), huts, guesthouses, and numerous typologies, the whole community will have a safe place that can be identified as ‘home’, in which to feel part of the bioregion. [...]

from chronicles 9.

Domestic Fatigue

3.

‘Terra Natia, Reverse exodus’ -

Project of a housing platform in the bombed Damascus: an architecture for the XXI century

Superstudio | Grand Dessein du Rationalisme | prof. Roberto Gargiani - S. Groaz B. Hamzeian, M. Korbi N. Donat-Cattin | EPFL 2020-2021 | w. collective ORBITA

PLn+ V V = Réactivation de la Ruine.

Du Croissant Fertile à la Plateforme Fertile

Dématérialisation de la Plateforme, réduite à pure Énergie, poussé dans le sous-sol, pour assurer une continuité spatiale. De la Ville Radieuse à la Terra Natia.

Précarité, Mobilité, Flexibilité.

Exodus en Revers.

Pixel-Farming comme nouvelle stratégie d’intervention.

Technologie au service de l’homme, entre Naturel et Artificiel. Rationalisme: de la Flexibilité à la Durabilité.

Domesticité alternative, de la propriété à la prise de soin. Antagoniste à la Métropole mais au service de cette dernière.

Les ingrédients du Grand Dessein du Rationalisme sont tous là. Ils orbitent, dans l’ espace idéologique, autour d’une réponse rationaliste à l’architecture du XXIème siècle.

Tout est en mouvement ; tout est central et au même temps tout est en orbite.

Nous mêmes – le collectif – sommes en mouvement. Nous suivons et sommes nous-mêmes l’orbite décisive, résultante, partagée, issue du croisement et de l’exclusion des orbites en jeu : ORBITA.

ORBITA organise l’espace, ne le crée pas.

ORBITA ne conçoit pas des objets, mais offre des possibilités.

ORBITA hiérarchise et offre un tableau de jeux, répondant à toutes les forces d’inertie proposées par les différents acteurs, naturels ou artificiels. Orbitez bien.

The Grand Dessein of the infra structure of the platform that would allow a reappropriation of abando ned places.

Manifesto of the ORBITA collective in which all the themes that need to be ‘orbited’ around in order to develop a debate are presented.

Jour / Nuit

3. ‘Terra Natia, Reverse exodus’

The central distribution node in which everything is connected and distributed.

Life scenarios between day and night and between various events that lead to the variation of functions and results in a continuous mutation of the plan libre in which they are located.

External views of the platform after the reappropriation.

Another Grand Dessein, in this case the PLn (Plan Libre puissance n) and its functioning is shown.

Vue Extérieure

MxD lab | prof. Jeffrey Huang assistant Frederick Chando Kim | EPFL 2021 | exhibited at the Seoul Biennale 2021 - MxD, EPFL + Convergeo + SPOA ‘Artificial Swissness’

The aim of the project was the design of a mountain cabin, a “Refuge” capturing “Swissness” with the help of artificial intelligence. With the use of existing Swiss refuges photo to train a GAN (generative adversarial network) for the generation of artificial images that will serve as basis for the design. Through reverse projection the generated images will be interpreted as volumes.

All along the process I’ve defined my interest in the investigation of the roof and the materiality of the facade, making sure that each project would still contain a clear evidence of ‘the Swissness’. This led me to combine two of the projects developed in the first generation and volume interpretation phase, so I mixed the facade and the materic component of the project named 4143 Toblerone, and the volumetric composition of the Trifuge.

In the new composition, the roof plays a central role, becoming the architectural element of the project, which has become, according to the needs or wishes of the users, a ski slope, a short hiking trail that could connect two different levels of the surrounding terrain, or even a climbing wall. Also internally the resultant spatiality of the building is very interesting since there are many variation of heights for each part of the refuge, but keeping the possibility to have interactions from the different floors and parts of the building.

Explore more the project

For the exploration of the latent space I used several checkpoints taken from different points of learning. two of the project interpretated and finally used the trifuge owes its name to the presence of three poles located at the change of direction of the roof and the 4143 toblerone takes its name from the toblerone path of which it recalls the shape and the concept of repetitiveness but also the sense of protection.

4. TriToblerone - an artificial generated alpine refuge which embodies the Swiss architectural characteristics or ’the Swissness’

The Tritoblerone is placed in the territory seeking maximum integration within the topography and is also located at the meeting point of several hiking and ski trails. The elements that compose the building have a clear function within them dividing between technical and functional while climbing up the first rooms we meet are the vestibules, just after we can find an entrance carved into the rock that gives access to the dormitories and on top of the valley is situated the refectory area. Each “block” is connected by a sloping corridor that opens at several moments on the valley offering amazing views during the walk.

De l’industrie à la ville - ‘La metropole Alpino-Lemanique’ an urban planning project: inclusion and activation of north Lemanic

ALPS atelier | prof. Paola Vigano assistant Roberto Sega and Antoine Vialle | EPFL 2018 - 2019 | w. A. Felber, P. Fumagalli, J-M Gillieron and B. Laville

At the beginning of the work we decided to concentrate on a precise case study which would allow us to extrapolate our system to the whole North Shore of the lake. For this we chose to work on the Aubonne watershed. It is a watershed representative of the whole, located in the area under the Jura and which includes many points of interest such as the small villages isolated from each other above the hillside, the presence of larger towns on the edge of the lake, a large commercial/ industrial area on the scale of the whole shore, without forgetting the omnipresence of agriculture, vineyards and pastures.

For the project concerning Aubonne, the idea is to give an alternative to the general allocation plan of the municipality. The proposal is to extend the industrial zone onto wine-growing land and to enlarge the building zone below the town. Our intention is to create a buffer zone between housing and industry by reusing industrial buildings and mixing agriculture and housing on the other hand.

Axonometry of the mixed industrial spaceand spatial model of the Aubonne watershed taken into analysis during the semester project

Model of the mixed industrial space, the terrace and the covered market. Two ‘Room with a view’ of the main squares. Collage of the covered market pergola

6. ‘Ceci n’est pas une friche’ - an urban vision for the territory of the Sambre, Belgium

ALPS atelier | Lab-U | prof. Paola Viganò | EPFL 2019 | Studio Paola Viganò in collaboration w. IDEA Consult, BEP, Commune de Sambreville, Commune de Jemeppe-sur-Sambre et Gembloux Agro Bio-Tech (Ulg) | exhibited at the Venice Biennale 2021 - Studio Paola Viganò ‘The Biopolitical Garden’

At the beginning of the work we decided to concentrate a vision for the Sambre territory: “Ceci n’est pas une friche. Nouveaux cycles de vie pour les territoires de la Sambre”. Theme dealt with in the workshop: the figure of the “centralities”. It is fundamental and organizes the urbanization of the territory. There are three levels of centralities:

1. urban centers and facilities (old and expanded), stations and railways

2. built-up area and facilities, structuring of bus lines

3. soft mobility network and micro-centers

In the urban centers, connected by the railway, a phenomenon of “enlargement of the center” is observed: from the historical center (red perimeter) to the new commercial/production platforms (gray) developed next to it. The possibility of complementary services between the two areas, a redesign of the ground floor, a new facade on the station should therefore be strategic moves to be considered.

The second level of centrality is related to the structures (in dark black) where the new bus lines organize the public transport network. In this case, it would be necessary to imagine aseries of projects linked to the structures, to their development and insertion, to make them real meeting and socialization places for the population.

The third scale is that of “micro-centralities” that are woven into the mobility network (rail, roads, bike paths and soft mobility routes). A micro-center can be a crossroads, a small town, an intersection of roads, a micro-center can be a crossroads, a small town, an intersection between a road and a place of historical or educational interest, along - for example - the redeveloped “Ravel”.

Map of centralities, the theme on which the WS was based and on which the various projects were de veloped. View of the central square of Ham-S-Sambre where the mar ket and public spaces become the key to a rediscovery of sociality.

7. Design Graphique - realization and production of a graphic design in formal,

conceptual,

aesthetic and technical aspects

SHS | Design graphique I-II-III | prof. Denis

Edouard

Roueche | ECAL 2017-2021|

Posters for three of the 2017 Nobel laureates in physics, chemistry and Peace. (2020-2021)

Publication ‘Swinging around the Lake’ in which all the golf fields located around Lake Leman were identified , presented and represen ted. (2017-2018)

Poster and booklet celebrating Jacques Dubochet’s Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Joachim Frank and Richard Henderson for their studies in electron cryo-microscopy. (2020)

8. Constructing the ViewObjects trouvé: a series of everyday objects visually re-embedded in a pictorial large scale environment | still life: series of computer-calculated 3D still lifes

Apparent realities - Constructing the view | Art and architecture: constructing the view I | prof. Philippe Schärer | EPFL 2019-2020 |