Of the five pieces showcased in the Agire (Act) section of the Taking Care – Designing for the Common Good exhibition at the Italian Pavilion, the first to go into production is the Health Box designed for Emergency by Matilde Cassani and backed exclusively by Arper.
The Italian company is proving that it truly believes in the importance of contributing to the common good, having played a key role in both the exhibition itself and as the main sponsor of the Italian Pavilion at the 15th International Architecture Exhibition of the Biennale di Venezia.
Thanks to further private sponsors and a crowdfunding project at www.periferieinazione.it, which has so far raised €100,000 and is open until 27 November 2016, the green light will soon be given to build a second Sport Box, designed by NOWA Navarra Office Walking Architecture for the Italian Union of Sport for All (UISP).
According to Raul Pantaleo of TAMassociati, the goal is obviously to build the three other pieces: the Culture Box by Alterstudio Partners for the Italian Association of Libraries (AIB), the Green Box by ARCò – Società Cooperativa for Legambiente and the Legality Box by Antonio Scarponi / Conceptual Device for Libera – Associations, Names and Numbers against the Mafia.
The curators of the Italian Pavilion (Massimo Lepore, Raul Pantaleo, Simone) wanted to use the exhibition to issue a call to arms to “act”, and not just to design, for the common good. And the culmination of the project will be the installation of the Boxes – modular spaces which can be entered and explored – in some of the more disadvantaged areas of Italy, as a means of raising awareness and benefitting society.
They will remain in place until the next Biennale Architettura exhibition, in 2018. The Health Box for Emergency houses a basic clinic, while outside curtains create a sheltered, shady waiting area. By night, a spherical lamp will light up the area around the Box, increasing its scope of action into the wider public space and announcing its presence from a distance.
15th International Architecture Exhibition of the Biennale di Venezia
Reporting from the Front
Italian Pavilion, Taking Care – Designing for the Common Good
Curators: TAMassociati (Massimo Lepore, Raul Pantaleo, Simone Sfriso)
Client: Department of Art, Contemporary Architecture and City Suburbs (DGAAP), Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities and Tourism (MIBACT)
Photography: ©Andrea Avezzù
