Erica Giusta discusses sustainable approaches to built heritage

Architecture

Venice 2022

ERICA GIUSTA

TOWARDS A TRULY SUSTAINABLE APPROACH TO BUILT HERITAGE: LEONORA CARRINGTON’S LESSON

In contrast with other historical centres in continental Europe, Valletta strives to retain its character as a laboratory where opportunities for change and exchange find tangible expressions. In line with its history as a symbol of Mediterranean identities, the city must continue to aspire to evolve and to react to complex challenges such as climate change, parasitic touristic trends and superficial consumerism. All this while guaranteeing its remarkable resourcefulness and cultural richness.

By following Carrington’s ideas about the importance of imagination, respect and integrity, Valletta could embark on a new journey exploring different modes of coexistence that remain innovative yet faithful to the city’s character and people.

In the words of Kozo Kadowaki, curator of the Japanese Pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennal 2021, “your actions are not yours alone. Any act, however trivial, sits atop an accumulation of countless acts that arose from your interactions with someone else. Therefore it can never be said that what you do belongs solely to you.” This mantra complements the exhibition’s theme as a timely reminder while auguring well for a world in constant evolution and renewal.

Photo by Luis-Rodriguez-Lopez

The magical world generated by Leonora Carrington over half a century ago in The Milk of Dreams offers a great perspective on the importance of imagination; in the personal sphere and the artistic and scientific disciplines.

Venice Art Biennal curator Cecilia Alemani states that “life is constantly re-envisioned through the prism of the imagination, where everyone can change, be transformed, become something or someone else”. Architecture can undoubtedly borrow a lot from this notion. However, for the practice of architecture to contribute to social and urban transformations in a meaningful way, it should be aware of the value of many diverse elements, from memory to innovation, from aesthetics to function, combining them with rigour and originality.

The complex magic required to combine all the elements to produce a just, healthy and beautiful built environment would not work without imagination. So isn’t our role as architects to constantly re-envision the built environment through the prism of the imagination? Now more than ever.

The major crises that we are currently facing (Ukrainian war, Covid-19, climate change etc.) are a harsh reminder of the importance of imagination to adapt and survive. Architecture, being so entangled with the ordinary, every day, and the extraordinary, the moment of crisis, is at its forefront. The swift transformation of structures, even heritage structures, required by the pandemic is just one example of imaginative adaptation steered by moments of unprecedented global change.

Valletta is a case study of great imaginative adaptation throughout the centuries: shifting from a military fortress, a bulwark of Christianity, to a thriving business centre open to the Mediterranean. Its more recent transition from British colony outpost to capital of a young, independent state generated a dynamic setting, perfect for testing new ideas.