DELLAPIANA, Italy

KUROKAWA, DELLAPIANA, BERMOND DES AMBROIS. Torino Porta Susa



 

PROJECT. The station, a system bearing all sorts of implications reaching out to all social conditions, is going to appear in its architectural unity as a body in symbiosis with the city. It still represents what in collective imagination is the expression of wait, of the irrepressible longing for travel and of hope for change.


Preliminary sketches.

Such a system is now standing out as a new element to fit in an important site of the city, along the dynamic flow of new "Spina Centrale", under which the railway is running. Our proposal to insert this new thread in the urban texture just being woven by the thoroughfare is a big parallelepiped lying along it and proudly showing all its lightness thanks to transparency. Transparent are the vertical walls, transparent the full light roof. The whole volumes are covered with suspended glass sheets, which, despite their relevant size, reflect the sky, merging into it, almost weightless, surrounded by green trees on every side.



 

Cross section.


 


Sud view.


Longitudinal section.

THE LIGHT BOX. The new Station is completely emptied except for six reinforced concrete structures supporting the roof, and for four volumes: the "sculptural masses". These masses contain representative functions and essential services. The functions strictly related to the Station are located in the first basement level. Whoever steps into the station should immediately feel one with a new exciting environment, which communicates the dynamism of movement and of contemporary life. Special attention is given to the choice and quality of the colours and of the light, natural or artificial, and everybody should be able to find easily their way thanks to the clear, well-signalled routes leading to the trains downstairs.

 


Main entrance.


Urban context.


South view at night.


South view at night.

Nocturnal effect are very important: artificial lighting will play an important role, bathing in light the glass surface all around its basis, gliding upwards and making the structure levitate, in a breathtaking combination of lightness and grandeur. The sculptural masses inside will be well visible from outside and lighted by lamps set in the floor, all around the volumes. The different shades of colour will produce a thrilling effect.

 

Paolo Dellapiana - nato a Torino nel 1967, Francesco Bermond des Ambrois - nato ad Ivrea nel 1966. Entrambi si sono laureati, nel 1992, in Architettura presso il Politecnico di Torino con relatori Andrea Bruno e Delio Fois. Dal 1994 svolgono l'attivit� professionale nel loro studio a Torino. Nel 1994/95 progettano per la Kappa Italia alcuni punti vendita in Torino, nel Veneto e a Tiblisi, in Georgia. Dal 1995 avviano numerose ristrutturazioni come la Nuova Biblioteca di Neive (CN), la "casa degli esercizi spirituali" di Alba (CN), la Confraternita dei Battuti a Castagnito (CN), una casa di abitazione nel centro storico di Alba e alcune cascine private sulla collina di Alba e sulle colline di Biella (TO) e di Alassio (SV). Di nuova realizzazione, a partire dal 1994, sono alcune abitazioni unifamiliari sulla collina di Pecetto Torinese (TO), di Guarene (CN), nelle Langhe (CN) e il nuovo stabilimento S.T.A. a Castagnito d'Alba, la nuova sede dell'impresa edile BARBERIS ALDO s.p.a. Dal 1998 partecipano, con l'architetto Ugo Dellapiana, al gruppo di progettazione del nuovo ospedale di Alba-Bra (giunto alla fase definitiva) guidato dall'architetto Aymeric Zublena di Parigi. Inoltre annoverano numerose collaborazioni professionali tra cui quelle con il gruppo Cliostraat, con l'architetto Ugo Dellapiana, con lo studio A.I. Engineering, con la PROMOGECO e studio GRANMA e con Negozio Blu. Nell'agosto 2001 hanno partecipato al concorso per la progettazione della nuova Stazione di Porta Susa di Torino con l'architetto Kisho Kurokawa (KKAA architects). Altri componenti del gruppo: Ove Arup & partner (Londra) e lo studio ing. Forte. Attualmente sono i impegnati, in collaborazione con A.I. studio di Torino, nelle opere di rielaborazione funzionale e ristrutturazione della stazione di Porta Nuova a Torino (nell'ambito del progetto "Grandi Stazioni").


Another important element of the project are the trees that become an essential component of the whole system, merging into the green of the thoroughfare, and from high you can see a sort of exclamation mark among the trees.


Urban context.

It is an exclamation full of deep semeiologic meanings in the intersection of different kinds of transport (train, underground, urban and suburban bus lines). As a matter of fact, in such a vital point of the city, countless contrasting feelings get together. And all are pleased and surprised with the solemn stand of the building: with its large empty spaces, with its quiet, its transparency and its light (natural and modulated by day, spectacular by night) contribute to create a habitat that reminds you of a beehive. To access the very Station travellers should go down, trough "floor holes", to the first basement level. These "floor holes" link totally the ground floor with the 1st basement floor, without interrupting the continuity between the levels.




Planimetrie.

 

Despite the definition, the Visitors building it's not only used by travellers, but by visitors and users of the different services located in it. It consists of the two parts of a large body surrounding a central open-covered atrium. The central opening between the two buildings is not meant to be a break, on the contrary it is an element that makes them both more impressive, by showing in the middle the interesting volume of an upturned pyramid, made even more thrilling by the soft nocturnal lighting. All that has been said explains why this area can properly fulfil the role of main entrance.

STRUCTURE. The general structure, as described above, consists of the three underground floors over which, at road level, stand the vertical structures. They include 6 large reinforced concrete volumes with vertical columns containing general facilities, elevators and security staircases. The large cores rise from the 3 underground floors to stand out well above the street level. The six big structures support in the middle the large metal roof as windbreaking elements. The roof consists of truss beams 30m long, resting on external mullions. The truss supports a roof of multi-layered safety glass.



 


North entrance.


Detail of the roof with photovoltaic cells.


The general structure, as described above, consists of the three underground floors over which, at road level, stand the vertical structures. They include 6 large reinforced concrete volumes with vertical columns containing general facilities, elevators and security staircases. The large cores rise from the 3 underground floors to stand out well above the street level. The six big structures support in the middle the large metal roof as windbreaking elements. The roof consists of truss beams 30m long, resting on external mullions. The truss supports a roof of multi-layered safety glass.

The vertical walls, (in panelling of about 240X400cm) of the south side and of the short east and west ends are coupled to a series of internal brise-soleil regulating the light and the radiancy in excess. The covering of the two porches at the ends of the building and of the central entrance are resting on truss frames 2m high and are supported by round section pillars.



 
 

Great care should be given to the treatment of glass surfaces, as it is vital to contain energy spending as much as possible. The horizontal panelling is to appear as a sandwich laminate with silicon photovoltaics inserted in between. The photovoltaics should be distributed in such a way as to cover up to 50% of the total surface, to the purpose of reducing the radiancy and regulate the light.

Such a solution allows to take good advantage of solar energy, which gets converted into electrical energy, bringing down global energetic costs. The energy taken in and out of the net is quantified by a measuring device, with no need for continuity systems by means of floating batteries. On the total surface we can predict an overall average production of 300 KW/h during daylight hours. Besides, the silicon panels inserted between the glass layers allow to reduce the amount of solar radiancy getting into the building, therefore acting as brise-soleil for the roof.