Murat Gunduz Memorial

The Extroverted River Block Allows Views to All Sides, and the Introverted City Block Preserves Privacy in the City Centre The Tilted Square surface

Location: Caltanissetta, Italy Designer: A3+ Architects (Dario Cottone, Marzia Casamento, Alessandro Fonte) Competition Date: 200 Competition Name: International Competition for the “Big Square” Site Area: 20,000 sqm Place in the Competition: First Prize

Awarded Reason:

The project is distinguished for having been able to interpret the identity of historical context, enhancing the meanings with the introduction of new architectural forms and new forms of furniture that are able to define a new qualified urban space.

The ribbon runs from the square, which is the heart of the community life. It timidly creeps in between the ashlars of the new paving stone and goes on toward the main road that loses its ruling “motor” feature and leaves a wide pedestrian precinct. Here the ribbon becomes a generator of urban mechanisms. From the ribbon the different planning elements issues: the seating element that frames and focuses on the extent, the green areas that in the shape of natural bubbles interacts in a complementary way increasing the quality of the project, the light needles, a lighting system that is arranged strategically to emphasis specific spaces. The combination of these elements starts off a space tangle, the most emphasised space. The ribbon points out its autonomy in certain field, by changing in plastic it leaves its bidimensionality. It shapes in wide organic seating, becoming independent, to follow new paths and streets, it pervades the space in the three dimensions, climbing on the steel and glass façade of the Bank of Italy or slipping in a hypogeum space used as exhibition room of the Contemporary Art Museum.

View of Salita Matteotti, with the entrance of the hypogeous space

View of Garibaldi Square that crossed by the red ribbon View of Garibaldi Square that crossed by the red ribbon

View of Garibaldi Square that crossed by the red ribbon

View of the area of Largo Barile, with the connection building with the Museum of Contemporary Art

View of Corso Umberto with the red ribbon and the “Light Needles”, which is made of steel and LED light View of the end of the ribbon among the historical buildings of the city