MASSIMIANO
Reuse and renovation industrial building in Milano Lambrate
The choices behind the project are: the conservation of the L-shaped body and the demolition of the shed component, to emphasize the internal views of the existing buildings; the demolished volume was replaced in part by an integration of the L-shaped body, in part by building, within the lot, a new more compact building that develops on two levels, positioned orthogonally to Via Massimiano; the first level of this new building is raised (+ 1.50 m) compared to the courtyard level and leans on a basement (floor level + 1.55 m) which occupies almost entirely the space and is intended as a garage.
The existing "L" body has been integrated into several parts. The facades of the new parts of the building differ from the existing one due to the presence of the loggias that define the projecting volume. On the ground floor the glass volume of the entrance protrudes in continuity with the above facad.
The east wing that stands on via Massimiano has been raised two floors. The existing part of the building maintain the original composition of the facade holes. This facade is covered with a coat and plastered in white, while the basement is finished with natural-colored cement.
The elevation, which does not entirely occupy the front of the building, is highlighted by the use of the different material that defines the volume externally: a sort of "box" whose faces are made up of a net of bricks, leaning on the existing building.
A pivotal point was to define the relationship between the existing parts and the new construction and this was made by the chosen materials, that are typical of the Lombard's construction. Bricks where selected to create a line of continuity between the place in which they are used and its history made of old industrial artefacts and, going further back in time, of rural villages.
As for the vertical connections, the three existing staircases have been preserved and integrated with the creation of two new elevator shafts.
The first level of the new building constitutes a new mezzanine floor (+1.50 m) distributed along the north front by a balcony which is accessed via a staircase and a ramp.
The north front of the new building is regular and compact and hosts the entrances to the individual building units developed on the two levels connected by internal stairs. The south front is more articulated. Both the building and the roof are covered with fiber cement panels used in the natural color on the reverse side in search of an agreement with the shades of the structure's cements and the internal flooring of the courtyard.
