Ispace

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ROSSA AND THE CALANCA VALLEY BETWEEN PAST AND FUTURE Davide Macullo

rupture that it is wise to recognize before we suffer the full consequences. The break with the ancient era, including the brief period called modern/ contemporary, from the 1500s to today, will expand dramatically with the advent of artificial intelligence. As historically experienced by the majority of people, adaptation to rapid change represents a challenge, especially when these changes erase certainties acquired during all of recorded history. Change started with the advent of agriculture, which shaped human destiny until yesterday and, I hope, it will again shape the future in a suitable way.

When I enter the valley and close the door behind me, a world of dreams and visions opens. This is a an unpolluted, healthy, genuine, and vibrant place, one that is human-sized, uplifted by the magnificence of nature. We still belong to nature, even if during centuries we strived, with sense of often unhealthy pride to distance ourselves from it. The Calanca Valley today offers a refuge and laboratory, open to people sensitive to the future of living, or more precisely, for those seeking the ideal place to live in harmony between genuine progress and nature. Inspired by the philosophical notes of the Italian designer and artist Bruno Munari (1907–1998), who referred to “a civilized people live in the midst of their own art,” we seek to build a place made of reasons to exist and coexist with the elements. We recognize nature’s dominant role and set aside the idea that we are the main drivers of the natural destiny of things.

Mutations in ecology in a broad sense (climate, politics, the economy) and human ecology (moods) already challenge people to be faithful to their own purpose, which is to say to the voice of consciousness within each person, to paraphrase Pope Francis. The distortions caused by globalization caught many unprepared, accentuating the between different parts of the population—

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We have reached a turning point that represents an unprecedented, epochal

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overwhelmingly rich environment compared to the presence of man.

A place where the presence of the geological time scale makes it possible to remember and reflect on the brevity of life, and on the utility of adding a constructive element in the service of humanity’s future. For the moment, this place is far from armed conflict, which is the ultimate expression of the misunderstandings that can be overcome through love for what we have inherited. Each person is in a position to comprehend the exceptional nature of this historic moment, and to act in a proactive way to trace the path to be taken. The citizens of this valley have attained a degree of freedom that has avoided the need for excessive assistance, and they are aware of the value of the liberty that they have achieved.

the poor and the wealthy, the young and the old. Feelings of inadequacy related to the new rhythms of life have exacerbated misunderstandings and damaged the delicate mechanisms of education and the transmission of values from one generation to the next.

Culture, when it can be isolated from obsolete conventions and inevitable corruption, still represents a precious tool that generates comprehension between generations. It remains the key to building a healthy society that permits the development of a healthy society, that allows humans to inhabit the planet in a genuine, sustainable way.

Rossa and the Calanca Valley represent the potential for an ideal microcosm that embodies the flame of a renewed intergenerational dialogue, based in a natural setting that expresses an

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THE ISPACES

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LOCATION: ROSSA, GRAUBUNDEN, SWITZERLAND

Ispace is a project born out of the idea of combining art and architecture to create environments that stimulate people to perceive the influence of a given space on their moods. It is a re-evaluation of this mountainous territory, allowing a rediscovery of the bond with nature. Ispace is an invitation to discover paths through the valley that reveal the richness of biodiversity and the magic hidden in the forest.

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CONSTRUCTION: JUNE 2023 SIZE: EIGHT STRUCTURES, EACH WITH AN APPROXIMATE AREA OF 20M2 MATERIAL: LOCALLY HARVESTED LARCH TIMBER

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