“Attraverso lo Specchio”
Commercial Sunflower Farms
Oasi Bosco di Cornacchiaia
Camp Darby
US Military Logistics Base
Low Socio-Economic Housing & Proposal for Student Accommodation
7 x Luxury Ship Builders and Port Authority
Saint Gobain Glass Factory
Utilities – Depuratore Pisa (sewerage treatment plant), Water & Gas
Turf Research Centre & Commercial Production
The project is titled “Attraverso lo specchio” – takes its cue from the reflective specialised glass of the Saint Gobain factory, to look and discover the “hidden” aspects of the canal.
It features a series of modular “cells” that reflect the story of historic industries, re- create a natural wetland and the sense of sitting in old timber boat facing the water, teach urban ecology to a new generation of visitors and provides a focal point for the luxury modern technology and future of marine activities.
The curved modular form symbolically draws on the ancient curves of the Arno river, the undulating dunes and depressions of the coastal plain, and the architectural form of the abandoned warehouses reflected in the canal waters.
The proposal was designed to be commercially, environmentally and technically feasible, with the intent to transition an urban wasteland to a natural and industrial wonderland through a series of modular interventions that can be replicated along its 14 km pathway.
5 x POD Focal Point Collage/Section/Visualisation
1. Reflection
Navicelli
The success of the site activation will require consideration of the entry point and con nection to signal a change, an improved environment and reflect from the busy road between the Marina de Pisa and the City Centre a hint of what can be expected.
There are four key design intervensions proposed to achieve this:
• ART GALLERY - Creation of an art gallery and curated/programmed exhibition space in the old warehouse that links the activity at EuroCity to the history of the ca - nal, creating an education destination.
• AN AMPHITHEATRE - A series of steps either side of the hydropholically managed western point of the canal that links to the River Arno, linking the skate park and the football oval at either side of the canal, greening the space for additional cooling and providing a public performance space for the school and publics.
• RED PATH - Taking its cue from PISA’s historic red colouring, a visual connection of the path at the entrance of the canal to take down the current “white path” to create the literal path of discovery for pedestrians and cyclists.
• ARRIVAL POINT - a Wayfinding Map and History of the Canal at the Western most entrance, together with a QR Code to further information on the canal, its industrial activity and points of interest along its 14 km path
• BRIDGE - a new bride to the Eastern side of the Canal to connect the new student housing, social housing and Euro - City to the new activation and proposed housing development.
