挑战迷宫

By Alessandro Cannavò

众所周知，米兰是一座“慢热型”城市。只有愿意花时间去探索和研究她的人，才能慢慢地感受到这座城市一点一滴的魅力。要想真正了解米兰，洞悉其庭院设计是一个不错的途径。贵族式建筑，一般外表线条细腻，其庭院里却隐藏着浪漫芬芳的花园。另一些庭院则凸显出人类辛勤的劳作和技艺，适合家庭生活和劳动作业。踏进Piuarch位于米兰布雷拉区中心地带的工作室时，就会有这样的感受。庭院内，在Via Palermo 办公区入口，就是设计简单的大楼，厚重的铁门和几何形状的大理石装饰，看起来有点超自然的感觉，这种布置着实超乎人们的想象。这里原是一个印刷厂，附近是《意大利晚邮报》报社，可以想象过去每到晚上，这里的印刷机与报社的各种机器就会产生此起彼伏的噪声。走进这里，几乎就能感受到人们忙碌的工作，到处充斥着机器声和油墨味。而大型阁楼中却是一片沉静景象。阁楼中间是楼梯，通往楼上。楼上的一张张大桌子上还堆放着刚刚结束的会议文件。这里也可以用于举行其它社交聚会活动。其它地方摆着各种建筑设计比例模型，有中国的，俄罗斯的，也有黎巴嫩和法国的。大约有40名员工在这里上班，包括四个创始合伙人，九个普通合伙人以及一些年轻建筑师和工程师。最开始的时候，四个创始合伙人认为，他们像是在仓库里举行即兴演奏会一样——大家都进行即兴创作，充分发挥创造力。后来，小乐队逐渐发展成大乐团。

在这里，无论是时间还是职责，几乎都不会进行等级划分。尽管这里也有计算机和各种3D仪器，但总体上还是以人为工作为主。这是由设计工作的本质属性决定的：在这里，建筑从根本上说是一种工艺，面对乱花渐欲的虚拟现实依然能够幸存，是一种骄傲。再往上，是平坦的楼顶，这里又会有新的发现。近年来，事务所楼顶灌溉着一座空中花园。花园中的植物根据季节而变。2016年空中花园进行了“动力学”改造，色系搭配从原来的红加绿（莴苣），变为橙加蓝（三色堇）。一排排的植物按颜色交替分布，形成一种认为的动态效应。类似于委内瑞拉动态艺术大师Carlos Cruz-Diez 的作品。在庭院内旧印刷厂楼顶，蔬菜与花卉形成一幅独特的画面，这就是Piuarch建筑师事务所的重要标识之一。Gino Paoli 的歌中唱到“我们是酒吧四友，我们想要改变世界……”。这正描述了 Francesco Fresa、Germán Fuenmayor、Gino Garbellini 及 Monica Tricario 创立事务所的初衷。20世纪90年代，四个有着不同背景的人相识于米兰Gregotti公司。Fresa，来自于罗马，柏林建筑学院毕业。Fuenmayor，来自于委内瑞拉，曾在加拉加斯和米兰就学。Garbellini，来自于意大利瓦尔泰利纳地区，米兰工艺学校工程学毕业。Tricario曾在米兰工艺学校学习，导师Achille Castiglioni。几番谈话与交流之后，他们惊讶地发现彼此有着共同的追求——将动感艺术与建筑融为一体。

他们喜欢 Getulio Alviani 为 Alberto Biasi 设计的 “Gruppo N e T”，同时也欣赏南美 Cruz-Diez、Jesús Soto,、Julio Le Parc 以及 Gertrude «Gego» Goldschmidt的作品。

杜嘉班纳（Dolce&Gabbana）总部和其位于米兰的旧电影院的改造就体现了这种艺术开放性带来的美学特征。垂直的钢筋立面，闪闪发光，很好地体现出其视觉风格——建筑外形随观众的运动而变。圣彼德堡俄罗斯天然气工业股份公司（Gazprom）总部大楼采用彩色玻璃板建造，并且玻璃板的角度各不相同，形成一种特殊的碎片感和折射效应。真实与虚幻相互交织。独特的风格使建筑格外引人注目。但设计并没有偏离其本质，依然秉承 Terragni and Gio Ponti 倡导的理性主义格调。设计中暗含着严谨，杜绝“景观性”，强调与周围环境的呼应。而有时建筑与周围环境的呼应体现为一种冲突感。米兰 Aulenti 广场的“白浪”（聚集了店铺和展厅的建筑），对面是联合信贷银行（Unicredit）大厦。与新门地区大多数建筑不同的是，大厦以三座呈水平弧度的塔楼构成，为米兰最高建筑。宽敞的窗户使其楼面外观新颖，与广场其它建筑垂直的遮阳窗设计形成对比。事务所一反常态，突出建筑的壮观性。实际上，大厦在设计过程中，并未打算在外形上超越其它建筑。

那么，可不可以说，这并非Piuarch建筑师事务所的“本质”呢？Piuarch建筑师事务所的名称涵盖了其成立的初衷，但仍然让人感到神秘。出于一种无需大量财政资源的想法（追求更高质量的建筑），事务所排斥那种“主角式”建筑泛滥的情况。因而，Piuarch团队最引以为傲的项目之一就是1996年塞斯托圣乔瓦尼（Sesto San Giovanni）的公益综合楼，那时事务所刚起步不久。“C”形设计围成庭院，采用木材增加建筑保暖性。木材在当时被人们嗤之以鼻，现在又再度流行。目前郊区重建的各大项目，都会探讨和借鉴这座大楼的设计。

Piuarch团队“去个性”化的方法，更突出辩证法，同时打造了一个“接力式”独立企业，各成员都积极按照“无头四人”组所需要的合作精神去努力。虽然建筑领域不乏具有凝聚力的团队，但能够总体平稳运营20年的也为数不多。Piuarch建筑师事务所选择低调前行。合伙人表示：“我们希望远离聚光灯”。如今，Piuarch建筑师事务所已成为新国际建筑领域中的重要一员。事务所参加了很多公共工程项目比赛（以国外项目为主，因为要在意大利建造公共工程始终是一项劳心费神且没有止境的工作），积极与私人客户合作，尤其是与（“具有现代感的”）时尚界私人客户合作。目前事务所的日常工作主要是维持业务关系、认真研究每一个客户的特定需求、转变背景环境方面的设计理念。那么，这些不就是建筑设计的全部含义吗？事务所于1998年开始与杜嘉班纳（Dolce&Gabbana）合作，正是凭借为杜嘉班纳进行的设计，事务所走上了国际舞台。

奢侈品领域，事务所为纪梵希（Givenchy）位于韩国首尔的店面设计了第二层立面，借鉴了时装店最具特色的服饰风格之一。此外，还将一度辉煌的Caproni航空工厂（20世纪30年代）改造为古驰（Gucci）的新总部。原有的外露砌体结构与新建的青铜建筑形成鲜明对比。青铜建筑坚固刚健，就如同这里曾经生产出的航空产品。

意大利法恩扎的 Brentini 建筑以及 Caritas 世博会展馆的结构设计以雕刻为特点，也有的结构设计借鉴了 Val d’Arno 地区 Incisa 杜嘉班纳（Dolce&Gabbana）工厂的蒙德里安式几何图案建筑师以现代视角看待自己的职业，将理念与现实相融合。二战后，很多建筑设计师是理念与现实相分离的。Piuarch建筑师事务所努力借助过去的最佳状态，将理念上的高品质融入到日常工作中。

在过去的几年里，笔者一直与事务所四大创始人之一 Francesco Fresa 有交集。我们尊重彼此，形成了深厚的友谊。午餐的时候，我们一般会讨论该如何更好地阐释城市（进而阐释整个社会），我们都很愿意倾听别人的不同观点。有一次，我们谈起了街道公共空间问题。那时，斯福尔扎城堡地区重建比赛即将拉开帷幕。Piuarch建筑师事务所报名的参赛项目取消了人行道与自行车道，以及自行车道与机动车道之间的屏障。我们的想法是，减少出行时人们所受到的“禁止通行”或“禁止入内”等标识的限制。这只是一个乌托邦式的理想吗？不，这一想法是为了让人们自觉提升责任感和素质水平。这种想法，如同事务所设计的动态空中花园（Piuarch打算将其对外开放，甚至对当地学生开放）一样，可能会成为建筑领域面临的最刺激的挑战——改善人们共同生活的方式。自展开业务20年以来，Piuarch建筑师事务所始终坚持 Italo Calvino（意大利著名作家）在《挑战迷宫》一文中的观点。创造力是前进路上不可或缺的动力。而当你以为找到了出路的时候，其实是即将进入另一个迷宫。Piuarch建筑师事务所发展成著名专业/个人企业的关键，就是坚持不懈的尝试与试验。

As we know, Milan is slow to reveal itself. It is a city that shows off its charms slowly,bit by bit, and only to those who are willing to study and explore it. One way to get to the heart of the city is to peer inside its courtyards. Aristocratic buildings conceal luscious gardens contrasting with the meticulous lines of the outside facades. But there are also courtyards that tell us about busy, industrious people, family lives shared and coexisting with craftsmen and labourers. That is the feeling you get when you visit Piuarch’s studio right in the heart of the Brera district of Milan. You would never guess there is a simple building taking up the interior courtyard just beyond the entrance to the premises in Via Palermo with a heavy iron gate and geometric marble ornamentation that looks almost metaphysical. This used to be a print works and we like to imagine the noise of the rotor presses echoing the much more powerful machinery running every night in the nearby «Corriere della Sera»newspaper offices. Noise and ink. You can almost feel the hard work going on as you enter thefirm. Calm chaos pervades the huge loft that has a staircase in the middle leading up to thefioor above. Large tables covered with paper are evidence of meetings that have justfinished and also more sociable get-togethers. Elsewhere there are scale models of projects under way everywhere from China and Russia to the Lebanon and France. This is where about forty people work, including the four founding partners, nine associates and other young architects and engineers. But when it allfirst began, so the founding foursome are quick to point out, it was like arranging a jam session in a garage: improvisation and the utmost creativity. Then the band turned into an orchestra.

There does not seem to be anything hierarchical about the spatial layout, either in terms of time or roles. Despite the computers and despite the 3D instruments and renders, there is a pervading sense of physicality, which pays tribute to the concrete nature of design work: here architecture is still fundamentally a craft, proud of surviving in the face of stupefying virtual reality. But it is time to head up another staircase onto thefiat building roof to discover something else. For a couple of years now, thefirm has had its own hanging garden up here, which takes on a new botanical theme with each passing season. In 2016 it was transformed into a “kinetic garden”, whose colour scheme ranges from red and green lettuces to orange and sky-blue pansies. Arranged in a series of straight rows in alternating colours, a dynamic effect is triggered off by people’s movements: a tribute to the Venezuelan artist Carlos Cruz-Diez, a master of kinetic art. So here among the vegetables andfiowers on the roof of an old print works located inside a courtyard wefind an important clue for drawing up Piuarch’s identikit.“We were four friends at the bar, who wanted to change the world...” This line from a Gino Paoli song points towards the origins of this collective founded by Francesco Fresa, Germán Fuenmayor, Gino Garbellini and Monica Tricario. The four of them met in Milan in the early 1990s working at the Gregottifirm and all came from quite different backgrounds. Fresa, who is from Rome, had studied at the Berlin School of Architecture; Fuenmayor from Venezuela had studied in Caracas and Milan; Garbellini from the Valtellina region had graduated in engineering from Milan Polytechnic;Tricario had studied under Achille Castiglioni at Milan Polytechnic. After talking and exchanging ideas, they discovered they had a surprising desire in common: to bring together kinetic art and architecture.

They love Getulio Alviani’s work for Alberto Biasi’s “Gruppo N e T”, but also admire the work of the South Americans Cruz-Diez, Jesús Soto, Julio Le Parc and Gertrude«Gego» Goldschmidt.

This openness to art is an aesthetic trait found in both the Dolce&Gabbana headquarters and old Metropol Cinema in Milan. The shimmering colours of the vertical steel facade blades are the most convincing embodiment of this optical style: its architectural dimension comes from the onlooker’s movement. A remarkable fragmentation and refraction effect can also be seen on the front of the Gazprom building in St Petersburg (The Gazprom Headquarters), which is made of coloured glass panels set at different angles. Physicality and illusion. And yet the stylistic touches that make these buildings so striking to look at do not detract from their underlying identity, which remainsfirmly in line with a rationalist approach inspired by Terragni and Gio Ponti. Underlying rigour that rejects spectacularisation and interacts with the setting. Even if only to contradict it. The “white wave” in Piazza Aulenti in Milan, a building grouping together shops and showrooms opposite the UniCredit Tower, stands out for its winding horizontally amidst a maze of

verticality in the Porta Nuova neighbourhood, further enhanced by the wide windows characterising the facade overlooking the square that contrasts with the vertical pattern of sunscreen blades, the team’s magnificent obsession, over on its other side. Its forms are not, in actual fact, intended to compete with the other buildings.

So, would not it be right to say that this is Piuarch’s true nature? Thefirm’s name itself encompasses a clear intent, which, nevertheless, remains mysterious; it rejects the kind of protagonism dominating architecture in the name of an idea (more quality architecture) that does not necessarily call for significantfinancial resources. It is no coincidence that one of the projects the team is most proud of is a social housing complex dating back to thefirm’s early days in 1996 built in Sesto San Giovanni: a “C”shape that creates a courtyard and the use of wood to instil warmth. A material now back in vogue that most people turned their nose up at back then. A project worth considering in all the current debate about redeveloping the suburbs.

The team’s depersonalised approach is not only more dialectical, it also creates a “relay-style” organisation, self-support that the members of the collective like to compare to the teamwork required of a “cockless four” rowing crew. Of course, there is no lack of collectives in the world of architecture, but only a few can boast twenty years of basically smooth-running business. Piuarch is progressing quietly. “We like to keep out of the spotlight”, so the partners say. And thefirm is now a significant player on the new international architecture scene. It enters lots of competitions for public works (particularly abroad, getting this kind of building constructed in Italy is always a nerve-racking and endless affair) and enjoys a busy working partnership with private clients, particularly in the world of fashion, “which shows a marked sense of modernity”. Business relations, careful studies of the specific needs of all its clients, and altering its own design ideas in relation to settings, are thefirm’s daily bread. After all, is not this what designing architecture is all about? Its business partnership with Dolce&Gabbana, whichfirst began in 1998, has projected Piuarch onto a more international plane.

In the world of luxury goods, it has designed a second skin for the Givenchy store in Seoul drawing on one of the fashion house’s most distinctive sartorial traits, and it has also designed the new headquarters of Gucci on the site where the glorious Caproni aeronautical factory used to operate in Milan back in the 1930s. Its original exposed brick structure stands in stark contrast to a sturdy new bronze building, as solid and virile as the products that used to come out of these warehouses.

There are sculptural features in the structural design of constructions like the Brentini building in Faenza or the Caritas pavilion designed for the EXPO, and even references to Mondrian’s geometric patterns in the Dolce&Gabbana factory in Incisa in Val d’Arno. The architect’s trade is viewed in a very contemporary way without separating the world of ideas from the working world; a dichotomy that has characterised the work of many post-war architectural designers. Piuarch strives to hold onto the very best of the past to instil conceptual quality in its day-to-day work.The person writing here has spent plenty of time with one of the four founding partners, Francesco Fresa, over the last few years. Friendship and respect aside,I think our regular lunchtime chats are proof of a mutual desire to listen to different points of view about how the city (and hence society) should be interpreted. Once we talked about the idea of shared spaces in the streets. It was around the time the competition was being held to redevelop the area around Sforza Castle and Piuarch had entered a project that did away with the barriers separating pedestrians from cyclists and cyclists from motorists. The idea was to reduce the number of no entry and no access signs to place greater responsibility on people on the move. A utopian dream, perhaps? No, just getting the community to show greater responsibility and maturity. This kind of project, just like the project for its kinetic roof garden (that Piuarch would like to open up to the community, even getting local schoolchildren involved), is perhaps the most exciting challenge facing architecture:improving the way in which people live together.Throughout the twenty years it has been in business, Piuarch has never lost sight of what Italo Calvino had to teach in his essay entitled La sfida al labirinto. Creativity is an ongoing challenge tofind the right way ahead, but when you think you have glimpsed the way out, you actually need to take on another labyrinth. Continuous experimentation is the key to this highly successful professional/personal enterprise.