Designing for the public good. We feel we have turned an affordable housing project into an action to defend public space, giving it back to the community. The plot borders the park of Cascina Merlata, the largest housing development in Europe. Initially planned as a ‘gated community’, we have proposed to break the volume into two parts to give back the community a public space, creating a ‘urban door’ between the Village and the Park. The new Piazza is an open and accessible space for all people relating the different levels of the street and the park: a threshold between the built and nature. We physically design a square in material and chromatic continuity with the two towers of affordable housing (shred community spaces on the ground floor), to underline that sharing a collective space is a key point to strengthen the identity of the community. The square is a fun, fully accessible public space. The two towers (14 and 12 floor) seem to have been generated from the same volume, split in two. The towers are cladded in durable glass mosaic, recalling the Masters of Italian Architecture. The volume is NZeB, with photovoltaic, water recuperation and circularity of the materials.
Bio Founded by Cappai and Segantini in 1994, C+S Architects, is an architecture office based in London (UK) and Treviso (IT). Their innovative and inquisitive approach, forward- looking but sensitive —unique in its pursuit of expanding the active role of designers in society, combined with a sensitivity towards heritage, community and the environment— have distinguished them as leading architects of their generation. They name their research TranslationArchitecture in search of Aequilibrium between the built and unbuilt.
Other prizes DNA Paris Award 2025 - Education Sapces Albo d'Oro Ingegneri e Architetti San Marino 2024 Architecture Masterprize - Best Firm 2023 Mies van der Rohe Award, Nominee 2023, 2021, 2009 Italian Architect of the Year Award 2022 BLT Award for Affordable residential towers in Milan, Italy, 2022 The Chicago Atheneum International Architecture Award 2022 German Design Award 2020 BigSEE Architecture Award 2019 Copper Concept Award 2013 Gold Medal of Italian Architecture 2012 InOpera Award 2012 Dedalo Minosse Architecture Award 2011 Faces of Design Award 2010 FarbDesignPreis 2009 Challenge 2009 of the Italian Ministry of Environment Albo d'Onore Architetti Varese 2008 AR+D Award 2008 Oderzo Architecture Award 2004
