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Perestrello in festa - Perestrello 2.0

orizzontale

A lost and found square in Marranella, Rome.


Part of a years long project, Perestrello in festa documents a public celebration marking the end of Luogo Comune - Perestrello 2.0, an experimental lab which goal was to reactivate urban voids by turning them into usable public spaces. Carried out from November 2010 until Spring 2011 by Orizzontale, this is second intervention of the architecture studio interesting Piazza Perestrello, a "lost" square facing Via Marranella in Rome.

The question Orizzontale posed was: how can we turn an urban void into something else? First of all by giving them a name: calling the Perestrello area either Largo or Piazza is a political act, a way to transform urban waste into a inhabited and shared space. The two words, in fact, recall a public dimension that was, to say at least, elusive, having no name, and transform it in a positive synergy.

Orizzontale has been active in giving a new life to what they call "lost objects" crowding the cities. In a figurative way, they say, "we see as lost objects also the uncertain and frayed relationships that mark our neighborhoods and even lost or forgotten ideas, such as the idea of a common space". What’s more, the architectural studio works on urban voids also by using leftover material and objects that could be used as primary source for setting up the architectural work. With Perestrello 2.0 they aimed to link together all these pieces in a open process that can give new meanings and fresh shapes for each one of them, listening to and incorporating the ideas of the inhabitants.

Perestrello 2.0 is the continuation of the work started with Le Orecchie di Giussano and Luogo Comune - Perestrello 1.0 - Work-Watching. The first is an intervention made in Pigneto, one of the most dynamic neighbourhood of Rome, that has become very attractive for new inhabitants such as students, young workers and foreign immigrants; nevertheless part of the quarter remains largely abandoned and still lacks essential services. Le Orecchie di Giussano aimed to start a dialogue with the inhabitants, to recreate common spaces, exchanging experiences and ideas. With Work-Watching Orizzontale turned the area into an auto-construction laboratory where the inhabitants could built their Piazza Perestrello with unique urban design furniture able to be freely moved within the space: each person being able to choose his own arrangement.

The video shown above recalls the happy vibe of the Perestrello in festa celebration, using an upbeat tone and the timelapse effect: while the architects set up the space, passers-by stop to watch what’s happening, children play with the construction material. It’s the story of a community transforming a space a home for itself.

(Story by Sara Marzullo, The Architecture Player)

Credits

Mentioned project: Luogo Comune - Perestello 1.0 - Perestrello in festa (2011)
Project location: Pigneto, Rome
Video footage: orizzontale
Video editing: Maurizio Montesi

Italy 2011
Duration: 2'21"