newitalianblood

‘LESS IS MORE 4’, THE PASSIVE ENERGY PROJECT BY THE ALVISI KIRIMOTO + PARTNERS STUDIO AND ARUP ITALIA HAS BEGUN The archeological survey required for the start up of the building site for a number of public buildings and green areas in Rome (the result of the international city planning contest, ‘ Less is more 4’) is in progress. The Alvisi Kirimoto + Partners Studio won the contest, which was organized by the Municipality of Rome to improve urban quality, in 2006. The contest was part of the program for the urban transformation of Grottaperfetta and the Tor Marancia district and included the design of a civic center, a kindergarten for 60 children, a park connected to the archeological finds in the area and level public parking areas. The team, composed of Alvisi Kirimoto + Partners Studio and Arup Italia Srl, has established an energy hierarchy as the basis for the variety of solutions adopted for the design of buildings able to reduce energy consumption and to limit CO2 air emissions. Natural lighting has been fully optimized through large glass windows and skylights and by the carefully planned orientation of the buildings. The kindergarten and civic center have innovative greenhouses facing South and their roofs are covered in greenery. In fact, ‘Less is more 4’ is one of the first Italian building projects to exploit passive energy. This project follows the shape of the area with buildings which are sometimes resting on the ground and sometimes raised to give the whole project, including the park and the parking areas a ‘unified’ look blending in with the greenery present. By raising and modifying the edges of the area from North to South, the kindergarten stands protected by the terrain, itself. The civic center will be the focal point of the whole project area thanks to its total permeability and its wide open presence. Even though the functions of the kindergarten and the civic center are distinct and autonomous, their matching roof gardens for the enjoyment of nature and art give them a unified look showing them to be parts of a whole. The greenhouses, distributed along the southern side of the buildings, are a new and winning project idea and its key point. They are designed to maintain a minimum temperature in the winter, to guarantee necessary air exchange and to let in natural light in abundance. In the summer, they cool high temperatures through the refreshing effect of their thermal mass and the evaporation from the irrigation of the plants they house which are combined with an increase of the air velocity of the natural ventilation. The whole ensemble was designed to reduce energy consumption and CO2 air emissions in line with European and national directives in support of the Kyoto protocol which was also underwritten by Italy and which took effect in 2005. Solar panels, roof gardens and collection systems for rainwater for the purposes of irrigation and non-drinking utilization – all carefully planned by Alvisi Kirimoto + Partners - contribute to bring the projects eco-sustainability to an even higher level. The civic center space is organized to be accessible and visible on all sides and it is a beacon of light for the whole surrounding neighborhood. The center is equipped with a conference room, research areas, a library, reading rooms, a newspaper library, multifunctional areas and an info point. The conference room can hold up to 50 people and it was planned as a single and flexible open space which can be darkened with mobile panels and drapes. It opens onto the entrance for public events which can hold up to about 150 people. The library is made of sharp, clean lines and open spaces which face the park seen through the greenhouse and it was designed to also be a unique area for reading during the winter months. It’s on more than one level and it’s multifunctional character allows the simultaneous use of other multifunctional areas for a book presentation or a cultural event. The kindergarten can welcome up to 60 children and it’s designed as a place where they can engage in supervised, gradual discovery. The rooms, even though well-defined and separate from one another thanks to shiny, round separations, seem to flow together in a permeable way. The inside of the kindergarten is marked by two large cylinders from which three sections – young, younger and youngest – emerge. In addition, there is a possibility of organizing and dividing the space for different play areas and theme activities by using mobile panels. With its full-view cement, glass and perforated aluminum panels, the kindergarten is a colorful ambience with lively and solar hues making the structure welcoming and comfortable for the evolution of perception of the youngsters. The greenhouse on the southern side, besides providing automatic thermal regulation to the building, gives the children an opportunity to explore a botanical garden with didactic paths through fruit trees and vegetable gardens to acquire new knowledge and to make continuous sensory and cultural discoveries. To complete the ‘Less is more 4’ project, there is a fragrance garden and a continuous wave. These artistic elements were created in collaboration with artist, Massimo Bartolino. The fragrance garden is an area of the roof garden bordered by a railing which exudes four different fragrances alternating during the various hours of the day and when the seasons change. This is to increase the value of the olfactory sense which is often sacrificed in the modern era in favor of vision. The entrance to the park, enclosed between the two wings of the building, goes by a round body of water: the continuous wave. Two concentric circles, full of water, symbolize the counterpoise between movement and stillness: the center circle of water produces a continuous conic wave, concave and convex in succession, while the water in the outer ring is completely still. Client: Municipality of Rome Project: civic center, a kindergarten for 60 children, a park connected to the archeological finds in the area and a level parking area. Site: Grottaperfetta, Tor Marancia district- Rome Director of works: Arch. Massimo Alvisi Project team: Arch. Arabella Rocca, ARUP ITALIA Srl: Eng. Maurizio Michele Teora - structures Collaborators: Junko Kirimoto, Eng. Luca Buzzoni - structures, Eng. Florence Collier – sustainability and systems, Eng. Francesco Petrella – geo-techniques, Arch. Alessandra Spiezia, Arch. Enrico Pisani, Arch. Chiara Quadraccia, Arch. Sara Piccialli, Arch. Leonardo Lorusso, Mercedes Munoz Arrocha, Giovanni Romagnoli Consultants: Massimo Bartolino – artist, geom. Giampiero Aresi – accountant, Olivia Bartalucci – speech therapist, Luca Crotti – agronomy expert, Maria Teresa D’Alessio – archeologist, Eng. Nicolalessandro Rocca – sustainability, Eng. Ugo Vittorio Rocca – sustainability, arch. Claudio Ronconi – bio-climate