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The city of Villacidro in Italy is located on the mouth of a valley, between the mountains. The urban fabric of the city, in particular in the historic area, developed itself in direct relation with the landscape morphology, defining building clusters clung to the rocks, one on top of the other.
The design of the new Civic Centre in Villacidro is located in a site that is an important urban reference point for the city and its inhabitants, due to its history and its morphological and natural features. The architecture of the new Centre, an essential focus for the city in the future, re-interprets the main aspects of the urban and natural surroundings.
The new building is located inside the historic garden of the Episcopal Palace, on the higher part of the area, minimising the land use and maintaining the function of its cultivated terraces intact as much as possible.
The complex, adapted to the morphology of the site, is opened to the city and becomes urban park, theatre, forum and arena, but also atelier, workshop, exhibition space: a building that is in direct relationship with the historic centre, with the cultural activities inside the Episcopal Palace and the renovated building of the old prisons, that accommodates workshops, learning spaces and exhibition areas.
Nick Myall
News Editor