Gabetti e Isola, Talponia housing Ivrea

Posted on by formalistfriday

1978 Roberto Gabetti and Aimora Isola built 82 apartment units in a circle shaped complex in Ivrea IT. The industrial city north of Torino became widely known because of the successfull Olivetti family building not only all it’s offices and factories in their hometown but also a lot of social services and a couple of innovative housing projects. The talponia (Unita residinziale Ovest) was built to offer a quite and more private alternative to the citylife. The strong formal idea of radially arranged apartments sharing the same view of a hill in it’s north was forcefully realized. The floorplan with it’s one-sided orientation surely has it’s disadvantages but it is the sheer simplicity of the concept that creates a strong identity and a very calm and enjoyable place.

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FORMALIST FRIDAY is an architects attempt in reflecting about form and nothing but form in architecture. It's about the forms matter and motivation and meaning but also about it's impact and importance and tradition. In times when the architectural debate often focuses on the borders and limitations of our field (as in "how to be sustainable?") I strongly believe in the cultural value of our profession and therefore disagree to the ubiquitous tendency of turning architecture in just another scientific field with clear rules and assessments. We need to get over the disorientation of the post-post-modernism. While I can't fancy a world in which only the rational has it's validity I even more disagree to believe in a backward directed approach. How can one imagine a future in which we try to recreate the spatial and atmospheric qualities of the past? We need a consciousness about our disciplines role and potential in shaping our time. Therefor we need a discourse about the value of form (of our built environment) and it's impact on everybody's condition as a human being.