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Rewriting the architecture of social spaces with Rizoma Architetture

The social role of architecture as a place and a means of encounter, a forge of creativity and avant-garden, is investigated by the Bologna-based studio Rizoma Architetture, so as to turn such notions into concrete and innovative projects. Relying on a working method that does not follow hierarchies or pre-set and pre-defined lines, the Italian studio believes in research, development and collaboration.

Following the thread of Giovanni Franceschelli’s words, Architect and Founder of Rizoma Architetture, we have deepened the theme of new sociality and hospitality spaces, for which the prefix “co-” is often a constant. We then understood the meaning of Mix & Match applied to the forms of living and investigated new frontiers of green architecture. Finally, as always, there was no lack of considerations and outlooks on new projects.

Starting from the very name of the studio, what does the word “rizoma” – Italian for rhizome – mean to you?

We chose this name for our studio because, after a thorough research on the existing structures in nature and, more specifically, on the roots of plants and trees, we came to the conclusion that the functioning of the roots is analogous to that of our neuronal cells. Our brain cells, in fact, cannot be connected through precise lines. Likewise, our ideas, and therefore the creativity of designers, architects and designers, are developed through a non-linear path.

Often we believe that, by pursuing a certain route, we’ll achieve a definite result. Nonetheless we are caught by the unexpected that affects the life of each of us. Therefore, rhizome is not only the neuronal course and the functioning of our brain, but it is life itself, namely the ability to follow these non-linear paths that lead us to achieve unexpected results, for better or worse. Rhizome represents life and, at the same time, the roots.

A significant part of us, that is the brain, functions just like plant roots. It might seem an abstract concept, but I also think of the utopia of finding a formula to define a creative path. To give birth to an idea and transform it into a concrete element, is the most important challenge for architects, who must certainly be creative but also well rooted on the ground. The combination of these two aspects finds linguistic fulfilment in the word “rhizome”.

Architecture has a noteworthy social role. How have social spaces changed in recent years?

Sociality as a whole has undergone, and is still undergoing, a slow and progressive evolution, undoubtedly supported by the use of digital tools. These latter have not only changed our lives, but also the spaces within which we live. Taking up the image of the rhizome, the existing connections between people can be represented through networks that over the last three years have been strongly solicited.

CX Turin Belfiore, Turin, Italy,  Rizoma Architetture - Image copyright:@Bruno Gallizzi
CX Turin Belfiore, Turin, Italy, Rizoma Architetture - Image copyright:@Bruno Gallizzi

Working, maintaining relationships of affection, thinking and realizing projects at a distance has put each of us faced with a rather obvious fact, that is the innate need of sociality. However, a new concept of sociality is taking shape. As designers and architects today we have a great challenge ahead, that is to think of a space that is not only physical, but also digital. The hybridization between these two components is the frontier of the new sociality that translates into many aspects and moments of our time. Our task, in this regard, is to create the conditions for this to remain a place of encounter.

Among the new hospitality formulas you worked on we can mention The Social Hub. What is the idea behind this type of structure?

The Social Hub consistently represents the period we have lived in the last three years, starting from the establishment of a firm that until October 2022 was named The Student Hotel. The idea of having a new form of temporary living has certainly been innovative, both when The Student Hotel was founded at the beginning of the new millennium, and with the first openings around 2012, and also today, ten years later. The decision to change the name was not only a re-branding operation, but also a reflection on the novel concept of hospitality and temporary co-living.

TSH Bologna, Italy, Rizoma Architetture - Image copyright:@Martino Dini
TSH Bologna, Italy, Rizoma Architetture - Image copyright:@Martino Dini

Today The Social Hub is a cross-cutting place where students can cohabit with young professionals, older people or tourists. It is therefore a hybrid hospitality, so to speak, both from the point of view of age and of being together, which can be temporary, as well as longer lasting. Nowadays we talk about short stay and long stay in relation to the time we dedicate to life in common. In this sense, The Social Hub has made a remarkable step forward.

We have become accustomed to transforming our homes into offices, classrooms and gyms. The Social Hub thus bases its identity on this new and at the same time ancient idea, which reflects what has already been said in terms of sociality. Working together is a value of our communities at all latitudes, and, in this sense, The Social Hub is an element of attraction, an urban magnet where people can find a place to be and work together. I would say, in conclusion, that “a hotel is no longer a hotel”. By this I mean that it is obvious that a hotel can no longer be simply a place endowed with a number of rooms. Nevertheless, it can be a co-working place with rooms in the form of The Social Hub.

One of the principles behind your projects is that of Mix & Match. Could you tell us something more about it?

That of Mix & Match is a rather radical choice that we made to “shuffle the cards” somehow. It is not a matter of style, as each historical period has its own recognizability in this. The Mix & Match principle is actually the result of an overlap of styles, and, above all, of uses and functions. The central theme of our action is flexibility. Mingling and combining things together means being open minded, thus finding the right balance between distant elements.

The practical example that I often propose concerns some student residences we designed where, paradoxically, the study halls are often empty and the kitchen is busy 24h/7. The combined function of studying, preparing a meal and sharing these moments with friends and colleagues is the essence of Mix & Match. When we have to think about a functional layout, whatever space it is, there are obviously two paths. The first, which is rather outdated, is to project every detail and put it inside a rigid scheme of functions. The second is the one we radically chose to pursue, in which the boundaries are much less rigid and kind of blurred.

We also have to leave the space available to people for reinterpreting it. This is a fundamental principle in the definition of sociality or new sociality, as it comes from the free interpretation that people make of space. Therefore, a train station, a shopping mall, a gym or a study room can change, for the simple action of the people who live there, its intended use. This is a principle that must be foundational for architects and designers.

The Collab, TSH Firenze, Florence, Italy, Rizoma Architetture - Image copyright:@Bruno Gallizzi / Sal Marston
The Collab, TSH Firenze, Florence, Italy, Rizoma Architetture - Image copyright:@Bruno Gallizzi / Sal Marston

You are committed to innovation not only in terms of structure but also in terms of environmental impact. What strategies do you put in place to carry forward the model of a green architecture?

First of all, we assume that the theme of sustainability at the beginning of the 2000s seemed a utopian challenge, eventually becoming a real need due to the current climate change and emergencies. The response of the world of architecture has been to follow all models, formulas and principles that, although correct, were addressed to a level of certification and compliance beyond the actual task that an architect should perform, that is to make people live well inside and outside the buildings they design.

Therefore, our viewpoint is not so much and not just a matter of energy efficiency or certification, but rather of a new, and perhaps radical, approach to the fact that we are obliged to take into account some fundamental aspects. It is clear that the climate has changed and that some extreme temperatures, especially in summer if we talk about continental Europe, have become daily emergencies. Having said this, green architecture starts from an assumption, that is to focus on the building envelope – and this is my first answer. A building is energy efficient when it is not consuming energy, not simply because it uses renewable sources. At the same time, and this is what interests me most, it must ensure good living comfort by controlling and screening the casing in summer and protecting people from the cold in winter.

Ultimately, green architecture is also a conscious choice of construction technologies and materials. As a studio, we have been building mainly in wood for many years now as we know that some more traditional technologies, such as reinforced concrete, have implications for health, well-being and internal comfort. Thus, we start from the shell, that is the structure, but then, and this is the third pillar, we need to review the choices in terms of materials. In recent years have been made available a series of resources that, in addition to being certified, are the result of an intelligent reuse of raw materials, which are not and should not be a choice of style.

This brings us back to the principle, that is to the idea of not pursuing a precise style, but rather a thorough research. This has become for us a mantra along with that of flexibility and Mix & Match. Working in green terms means making precise choices and excluding some materials. The industrial world will also change in this sense together with that of automotive. Then, the theme of sustainable mobility will obviously push many companies and multinationals towards a green economy. In the field of architecture and interior design this is already happening.

What is the direction of the new projects?

Among the new projects, there are two hybrid hospitality models with CampusX in progress in Milan, one in the Bicocca area and the other in Novate Milanese. These are both significant interventions as we are talking about more than four hundred student rooms and fifty hotel rooms in the first case and nine hundred student rooms and sixty hotel rooms in the second. Intervening in a city like Milan that has an important housing demand also means understanding what is the best formula in terms of economy and reception of our principles.

CX Milano Bicocca, Milan, Italy, Rizoma Architetture - Image copyright:@Rizoma Architetture
CX Milano Bicocca, Milan, Italy, Rizoma Architetture - Image copyright:@Rizoma Architetture

The Social Hub is once again our customer on a project in Florence, The Belfiore Social Hub, which will be their flagship in Italy and throughout southern Europe. Again, we are talking about six hundred rooms and a co-working facility of about three thousand square meters. Also for The Social Hub, the most innovative project we are following is in Rome, in the San Lorenzo district, in a disused industrial area that has been reclaimed and within which there will be a park open to the city. These cited are further examples in which the idea of a new sociality and that of Mix & Match explain the principles we are following through our work.

All started at a time when, being distant, we actually understood the value of being together. We translated it into a simple word, namely TOGETHERNESS, which guides us and has also become a book published by The Plan. Here, we collected the reflections of our friends, customers, colleagues, but also people we have known in recent years to rethink the new sociality, to be together. Finally, I hope that this togetherness will eventually be a green togetherness.

Giovanni Franceschelli, Architect and Founder of Rizoma Architetture - Image copyright:@Rizoma Architetture
Giovanni Franceschelli, Architect and Founder of Rizoma Architetture - Image copyright:@Rizoma Architetture
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