NEWS & EVENTS > TRANSFORMATION OF DE CASTILLIA 23 INTO A BIG VERTICAL SKY

TRANSFORMATION OF DE CASTILLIA 23 INTO A BIG VERTICAL SKY

During the Milan Design Week 2024 Urban Up | Unipol presented A Breath of Air, the site specific installation by Studio Azzurro positioned from the 15 to the 21 April on the De Castillia 23, a building redeveloped by Urban Up | Unipol and owned by the Group. With The Breath of Air De Castillia 23 became the focus of the exhibition “Cross Vision” – a key event for international design and architecture by INTERNI and the official location for Design week. In continuity with the previous edition for 2024 Urban Up continued its focus on environmental awareness once again concentrating on the importance of safeguarding the environment by approaching the topic on different scales (from micro to macro) and focusing on another element which is of great interest and relevance today more than ever: air. Air is what keeps cities alive, they are like living beings: they are born, grow, change and breathe. The present and the future of those who inhabit it depend on how a city breathes.

Studio Azzurro interpreted the theme proposed by Urban Up imagining De Castillia 23 as a large vertical sky of 4000 sq. m which every evening was lit up in blue starting at 20:00 during Design Week. 13 soft air-inflated clouds of various sizes (from 7.5 x 2.5 m to 13.5 x 5) were installed on its prismatic and multifaceted eco-façade which were also lit by led lights adorning the building with a “pop” twist for a week.

With the “Breath of Air” De Castillia 23 therefore became a poetic sky in “Magritte style”, a message to all of us on how the skies in our cities should be. It is precisely in consideration of the importance of this message that the installation was judged worthy of the patronage of Legambiente. According to data from Mal’Aria 2024, the Report complied annually by Legambiente, in Italy the fight against smog is still an uphill battle with 69% of cities that do not comply with new European targets for 2030 for PM10. Despite a reduction in levels of air pollutants in 2023, cities struggle to accelerate the pace towards a substantial improvement in air quality. Their current levels have been stable for several years now, in line with current legislation, but remain far from the suggested values of the World Health Organisation (WHO), highlighting the need for a decisive commitment that can no longer be postponed, to safeguard the health of citizens. Cities occupy 4% of the European area, are home to 75% of its inhabitants and are responsible for more than 70% of total CO2 emissions. By 2030 countries in the European Union will have to transform cities and improve the quality of life of those who live there.

“We continue to experience significant and unjustified delays in promoting transversal solutions – commented Giorgio Zampetti, director general of Legambiente, - we therefore need a radical change capable of effectively impacting the various sources of smog: building heating, industry, agriculture and, of course, mobility.” In this sense Urban Up in its activities in the urban dimension this year invites everyone to reflect on the theme of safeguarding air quality in the management policies of large cities and urban planning by working both in terms of macro areas as well as individual buildings.
“With this in mind – explained Giuseppe Lobalsamo Real Estate Director of the Unipol Group – the Studio Azzurro installation effectively interprets our approach to real estate which has always seen us engaged on two fronts: on one hand in the urban regeneration of large peripheral areas owned by us, and on the other in the green design of individual buildings inspired by the sustainability principles which De Castillia 23 is a virtuous example of”. Once it became part of the properties owned by the Group after years of being abandoned, the building was completely redeveloped thanks to the design solution proposed by Progetto CMR which preserved its original concrete skeleton thus avoiding the CO2 emissions that would have resulted from its demolition. All the external surfaces are covered with dark porcelain stoneware - Cloudy Core Active and Sharp Core Active by Fiandre - treated with Tx active titanium dioxide coating capable of activating a photo alkaline principle to combat pollutants in the air. The prismatic facade increases energy performance mitigating part of direct solar input, both in the summer and the winter, and make it possible to reduce the use of artificial lighting by 70%.

Furthermore, thanks to a partnership with Ethicarei, the first Italian ethical production chain guaranteed by the World Fair Trade Organisation (WFTO), at the end of the Design Week the textile material from the installation “The Breath of Air” was not disposed of. The fabric from the clouds was used to produce a special collection of accessories as proof of the desire to reduce waste and favour the circular economy that makes compliance with the UN Agenda 2030 sustainability objectives tangible.

Finally, during the entire Design week the clouds positioned on the facade were echoed inside the building: the De Castillia 23 hall exceptionally hosted the Moncloud system, a distinctive sofa made using reused materials, designed by the famous designer Patricia Urquiola for Cassina. The inaugural event of the installation which was held on the 17 April on the ground floor of the De Castillia, was opened with short speeches by Giuseppe Lobalsamo Head of Real Estate Management of the Unipol Group, Massimiliano Morrone Head of Real Estate Asset, Investment & Technical Management of the Unipol Group and MD of UnipolSai Investimenti SGR, Leonardo Sangiorgi of Studio Azzurro, Giorgio Zampetti Director General of Legambiente, Gilda Bojardi director of INTERNI and Maria Luisa Parmigiani, Sustainability Manager of the Unipol Group.

Milan
April 24, 2024