The project, developed by Mario Cucinella Architects in the heart of Milan, consisted in the renovation of an historic 19th-century building and its extension, creating additional spaces specifically designed for museum uses. The project was commissioned by the Fondazione Luigi Rovati, founded in 2016 with the aim of bridging art and science, bringing the two disciplines together in memory of Luigi Rovati, physician, researcher, and passionate art collector. Since 2022, the renovated palazzo is home to the Foundation’s art museum, which juxtaposes an impressive collection of Etruscan artefacts with important pieces of contemporary art to create a varied cultural space promoting research, exchange, and education.

The architectural project was designed to create a strong dialogue with the collections that would be on view: the hypogeum-inspired spaces located below the palazzo and extending beneath the garden evoke, in fact, the atmosphere of mysticism and suspense associated with the Etruscan tombs of Cerveteri. large slabs of bright Pietra Serena sandstone lend a chiaroscuro effect to the exhibition itinerary, while constellations of vases seem to float in mid-air, supported by suspended planes that are almost invisible within large transparent display cases. Upon leaving this evocative museum space, visitors emerge into the building’s 19th-century architecture, renovated to accommodate museum operations, including a library, a conference room, temporary exhibition spaces, and a restaurant at the top floor. Meanwhile, the ground floor boasts a bookstore, bistro and internal courtyard and garden, freely accessible to the public. Indeed, the project was founded on the idea of creating a museum that would be open to the city, where visitors could stop by for a chat and a look around, like guests in a simple but refined urban living room.

From the main entrance visitors descend a staircase carved in Pietra forte Fiorentina, which takes them from the reception to the underground exhibition space. Here three circular rooms and a large elliptical room cloaked in semi-darkness are enveloped by 30,000 stone segments, each one individually designed, built and assembled to obtain a formal continuity that gives the intervention a sense of unity and natural fluidity, recalling the organic shapes of the quarries, where the Pietra forte Fiorentina is extracted.

Because of the size of each segment (5 centimeters thick, one meter long, and each 5 millimeters apart) the horizontal stripes of the stone give this imposing mass an effect of suspension. Additionally, the Mica flakes in the mixture of the stone create a multitude of small points of light in the shadows and in the solid mass.

The exhibition design was conceived to further the narrative initiated by the building’s architecture – that of generating an immersive experience of the works on view. The exhibition itinerary is not rigidly defined, permitting visitors to move about freely, exploring the domes where the artifacts are displayed in large glass cases or discovering new narratives in the 19th-century style rooms of the upper ground floor. All the visual components are perfectly controlled: the glass for the cases was custom designed and produced to eliminate reflection; the lighting system is carefully designed to guarantee a high degree of comfort in the observation of the pieces.

Fondazione Luigi Rovati has received prestigious recognition for its features: the LEED GOLD certification, recognizes buildings that are exemplary in terms of environmental impact. The use of recycled, environmentally sustainable materials and cutting-edge technological infrastructure were two essential choices in the Foundation’s efforts towards sustainability.

The building’s climate control is based on the principle of lower consumption to achieve greater comfort: the lower energy needed to maintain optimal temperature is due to the use of groundwater. The lighting is entirely provided by LED fixtures equipped with self-adaptive sensors that lead to the automatic shutdown of lights in the absence of movement and adjustment of the amount of light provided indoors based on external brightness. Part of the electrical energy production is guaranteed by a photovoltaic system on the roof. Air quality is ensured by efficient filtration systems that also control indoor CO2 levels.

For water savings, there is a rainwater collection tank to meet various needs, including garden irrigation, where water-saving plant species are present. In addition, materials, paints, and adhesives with low environmental impact were privileged during the renovations, in an aim to reduce VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) emissions into the atmosphere.

Priority was given to locally sourced materials, recycled where possible. New wooden elements were FSC certified for forest conservation, and existing ones were restored and preserved to maintain the building’s historical significance and splendor.

The project involved the redevelopment of a historic palazzo in the heart of Milan, renovated to house the art museum of the Fondazione Luigi Rovati. Manens S.p.A. developed the entire MEP facilities project with the goal of achieving high standards of environmental sustainability.

The design was geared toward minimizing energy and water consumption and maximizing environmental comfort, thermal, acoustic, and visual. In addition, strict control of indoor thermohygrometric conditions was maintained to ensure the preservation of the works.

Rating system: LEED V4 BD+CNC

Project client: FIDIM S.r.l.

Architectural design: Mario Cucinella Architects (www.mcarchitects.it)

General contractor: Ediltecno Restauri S.r.l. (www.ediltecnorestauri.it)

LEED Manager for the Client: Fabio Viero – Manens S.p.A.

Commissioning Authority: Gian Paolo Perini – Tecnoprogetti

Structural design: Milan Ingegneria (www.buromilan.com)

Mechanical systems project: Manens S.p.A. (www.manens.com)

Electrical systems project: Manens S.p.A. (www.manens.com)

Photo Credits: © Duccio Malagamba