08043 - Restoration

Learning outcomes

The objective of the course is to train professionals who are able to: understand an architectural structure in relation to its origins, transformations, and context; analyze materials and the phenomena of alteration and degradation; draft a conservation project for the structure that maximizes its longevity; and perceive restoration not as a separate discipline but as a way of thinking about architecture and the existing built environment. The intervention on the pre-existing structure is to be seen as a new phase in the transformation process of a building, understood through its history, analysis, and the study of how it was constructed and with what materials.

Course contents

The Laboratory: Project, History, and Restoration (C.I. 16 CFU, 192 hours) comprises, in addition to the core module/course in Restoration (6 CFU, 72 hours), the following modules/courses:

• New Technologies for Building Survey (2 CFU, 24 hours);
• Aesthetics of the Landscape (2 CFU, 24 hours);
• Consolidation of Historical Buildings (2 CFU, 24 hours);
• Project and Active Conservation of Historical Landscapes and Open Spaces (2 CFU, 24 hours);
• Architectural Composition/Museography (2 CFU, 24 hours).

Preferred Investigation Focus

The focus will preferably be on structures in a state of ruin within contexts of classical, medieval, modern, or even contemporary archaeology. This will involve studying the landscape where the artifacts are located and analyzing their reciprocal relationships to ensure their survival.

Phase A: Initial Study

The intervention on proposed structures (suggested by the instructor or the students) will be divided into an initial study phase, which includes: bibliographic and archival research; contextualizing the object of study within the urban environment (historical relationships with the surroundings and systems of ancient and modern pathways and roads); identifying any potential archaeological risks. Required deliverables: phased plans and planivolumetric reconstructions of the complex in various historical stages.

Phase B: Field Campaign

The second phase will consist of a field campaign, which includes: collecting available survey documents and verifying them; conducting a photographic campaign (exterior, interior, detailed) to frame the theme and its architectural characteristics; identifying the main construction features (including structural systems) and materials used; studying the primary phenomena of structural failure and material degradation; analyzing the evolution of the structure (interpreting the phases of addition and removal of parts by human or natural actions). Required deliverables: analysis of the consistency and state of conservation.

Phase C: Safeguard Program

Finally, students will be required to draft a safeguard program, which may not necessarily involve direct intervention on the object. Alternatively, they may prepare a conservation project for structures in a state of ruin, following minimal intervention principles. If conditions permit, to ensure the survival of the artifact without aiming for continuous use, the student may attempt to integrate conservation with the measured addition of new parts. This involves working with detached structures, both materially and ideally, to reintegrate the existing structure into a new architectural ensemble. The following aspects must be considered: the relationship between old and new structures, especially in light of seismic regulations; the nature of the materials to be used and their relationship with the existing ones; the compatibility of any new plant network that the structure may require. A maintenance/conservation plan must also be drafted. Required deliverables: documentation indicating any demolitions and reconstructions; restoration and conservation project of the existing structure; architectural project for any new structures; study of vocations, functions, and pathways (including accessibility for disabled persons); construction details (structures and systems).

Readings/Bibliography

• Ashurst J., Conservation of Ruins, Butterworth - Heinemann, Hardcover, 1990.
• Carbonara G., Trattato di restauro architettonico, Torino, Utet, 1996, voll. I- VI.
• Carbonara G., Trattato di restauro o architettonico. Primo aggiornamento, Torino, Utet, 2007.
• Cecchi R., Roma Archaeologia. Interventi per la tutela del patrimonio archeologico. Primo rapporto, Electa, Milano 2009.
• Cecchi R., Roma Archaeologia. Interventi per la tutela del patrimonio archeologico. Secondo rapporto, Electa, Milano 2011.
• D'Agostino S., Cairoli F. Giuliani, Conforto M.L., Guidoboni E., Raccomandazioni per la redazione di progetti e l'esecuzione di interventi per la conservazione del costruito archeologico. Cuzzolin Editore, Napoli 2009.
• Della Torre S., Manutenzione o Conservazione? La sfida del passaggio dall’equilibrio al divenire, in G. Biscontin, G. Driussi (a cura di), Ripensare alla manutenzione. Ricerche,progettazione, materiali, tecniche per la cura del costruito, cit., pp. 71-80.
• Della Torre S., (a cura di) La conservazione programmata del patrimonio storico architettonico. Lineeguida per il piano di conservazione e consuntivo scientifico, Guerrini, Milano 2003.
• Della Torre S., Preventiva, integrata, programmata: le logiche coevolutive della conservazione,in Pensare la prevenzione. Manufatti, usi, ambienti, a cura di G. Biscontin,G. Driussi, atti del XXVI Convegno Scienza e Beni culturali (Bressanone, 13-16 luglio 2010), Arcadia Ricerche, Venezia 2010, pp. 13-16.
• Musso S. Paolo Torsello B., Tecniche di restauro architettonici,Torino, Utet, 2003,voll. 1-2.
• Musso S., Recupero e restauro degli edifici storici, Guida pratica al rilievo ed alla diagnostica, , Roma, Epc Libri, 2006
• Marino L., (a cura di) Dizionario di restauro archeologico, Alinea, Firenze 2003.
• Marino L., Interventi di restauro sui ruderi archeologici. La protezione delle creste murarie, Didapress, Firenze 2023.
• Pedelì C., Pulga S., Pratiche conservative sullo scavo archeologico. Principi e metodi, All’Insegna del Giglio, Firenze 2002; trad. en. Conservation on Archaeological Excavations. Principles and methods, Getty Conservation Institute, Los Angeles 2013.
• Ugolini A., Il restauro delle mura del Castello di San Clemente, Firenze, Alinea 2009.
• Ugolini A.,When matter holds memories, when landscapes offer the promise of peace. Montesole more than half a century after the massacre.. pp.123-138. In Heritage in conflict memory, history, architecture -2015.
• Ugolini A., Strappati all’oblio. Strategie per la conservazione di un luogo di memoria del secondo Novecento: l'ex campo di Fossoli. Altralinea, Firenze 2017
• Ugolini A., Dall’emergenza alla prevenzione. Archeologia preventiva e progetto di conservazione/restauro del patrimonio archeologico, in RICerca/REStauro. Sez. 5.2 Tutela, pratica, codici e norme. Casistiche e interpretazioni, a cura di M.G. Ercolino, Edizioni Quasar, Roma 2020, pp. 821-828.
• Ugolini A. Matteini T., Il bisbiglio dei ricordi indefiniti. Progetto paesaggistico e conservazione attiva dei luoghi archeologici, Il Poligrafo, Padova 2023

Additional bibliographic references will be provided during the course based on the topics covered. For updates on the field and insights from restoration sites, at both the building and urban scale, the following journals are recommended for consultation:

ANAΓKH, AR, Arkos, Bollettino d'Arte, Casabella, I Beni Culturali, Kermes, Materiali e Strutture, Paesaggio urbano, Palladio, Recupero & conservazione, Restauro, Restauro & Città, Ricerche di Storia dell'Arte, Storia Architettura, Storia Urbana, TeMa, V&D, CONFRONTI, Intrecci, Restauro Archeologico. Archistor

Teaching methods

The course is structured into lectures and practical exercises. The lectures support the exercises on the specific project theme and cover topics of restoration theory and history, methodological and general issues, and technical and construction aspects.

The practical exercises will be carried out, with the support of professors and tutors, in sites identified annually based on agreements with the owners and managers of these sites, both public and private.

Assessment methods

The Laboratory: Project, History, and Restoration (C.I. 16 CFU, 192 hours) comprises, in addition to the core module/course in Restoration (6 CFU, 72 hours), the following modules/courses:

• New Technologies for Building Survey (2 CFU, 24 hours);
• Aesthetics of the Landscape (2 CFU, 24 hours);
• Consolidation of Historical Buildings (2 CFU, 24 hours);
• Project and Active Conservation of Historical Landscapes and Open Spaces (2 CFU, 24 hours);
• Architectural Composition/Museography (2 CFU, 24 hours).

For this type of course (Graduation Laboratory), it is expected that a verification of the students' suitability to begin preparing their thesis will be conducted. The progress of learning is monitored during the course through periodic reviews.

The suitability verification is carried out in a single exam, common to all modules of the Laboratory, at the end of the Laboratory itself. The verification aims to ascertain the individual level of learning achieved concerning the contents of all the modules/courses that make up the Laboratory (C.I.). The verification consists of the student presenting and discussing their project work with the Committee and also includes an assessment of the theoretical and technical knowledge related to the topics covered in the laboratory.

The suitability assessment is based on the weighted application of the following three criteria: knowledge of theoretical content and bibliography and acquisition of instrumental skills, 30%; depth of the project hypothesis, 30%; clarity and effectiveness in presentation, 40%

Teaching tools

Classroom lessons, reviews, site inspections at MiC construction sites, and study trips are planned

Links to further information

https://www.unibo.it/sitoweb/a.ugolini

Office hours

See the website of Andrea Ugolini