New Walkway Project for the Accademia Carrara
Premio Italiano di Architettura 2025
The expansion and enhancement project of the Accademia Carrara, along with the recovery of the enclosed green space, designed by Antonio Ravalli Architetti in collaboration with INOUT Architettura, stems from a dual objective: on one hand, to create a museum pathway connecting the recently renovated internal spaces, and on the other, to integrate new spaces and services—such as the garden and café—into the complex. This approach aligns with the trends and dynamics of contemporary museums, which are increasingly attentive to the needs of visitors while fully respecting the building’s morphology and historical significance.
The project, which in January 2023 saw the inauguration of the completely revamped internal museum spaces, is now being completed with the opening of the building towards the exterior and the enhancement of its special location within the urban fabric that deeply characterizes it. Nestled at the foot of Città Alta, below the Venetian walls and near the Baluardo di Sant’Agostino, the museum’s setting is uniquely intertwined with the city’s historical and natural context.
Leaning on the ancient stone infrastructures that once shielded the museum from the encroaching hillside and the aquifers that run through it, the project reclaims and embraces the historical buffer zone that once separated nature from the built environment. It is within this buffer that the building finds its form and geometry, where archaeology, water, stone, wood, and metal merge to create a new structure, open to the unique views of the park and the city, while forming a new narrative journey.
This new connection aims to be an immersive experience: a complex structure, partially concealed by the hillside terrain on which it stands, featuring ramps, stairs, and an elevator. More importantly, it offers spaces for pause and openings that allow visitors to stop and observe the city, step outside and linger in the restored garden and terraces, access the new café, and then re-enter to continue the artistic journey.
