External elevator, Milano, 2015

The project compares with a building of high architectural value designed by architects Figini and Pollini between 1951 and 1955 as part of the Harar district development. The building and the neighborhood in general represent in an exemplary manner the rationalist architectural cultural position of the era, in relation to the settlements transformation resulting from post-war urban expansion.

The intervention involves the replacement of obsolete lift lounges added to the North Face of the building around the eighties. The front of the building facing the San Siro stadium has a rather continuous wall surface, characterized by overlapping horizontal bands, marked by the gallery and framed by a border corresponding to the edges of the building.

The project re-elaborates this pivotal simplicity of language by defining an elevator compartment covered by a metal carter that looks similar to the color of the facade gallery. The space stereometry is interrupted by a vertical ribbon glass along the west side that generates a natural detachment between existing artefacts and new architectural elements. The measured glazed score guarantees natural sunlight in the cabin during daytime hours and defines an fascinating lantern effect during night time. The structure of the elevator compartment is therefore completely screened by a dark brown metallic carter, a kind of leather that resembles the predominant facade tint. In the upper end part, the coating bends perpendicularly to protect the lift from the weather, and also performs a composite element function, re-proportioning the compartment structure to the entire body. The landing area on the floor is finally protected by rain through thin glass shelves, grafted above the staircase access portal.