15/04/2011

DIALOGUES ON SUSTAINABILITY AND CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN ARCHITECTURE

A meeting was held with Mario Cucinella, an international master of sustainable architecture, yesterday at Politecnico di Milano, the architecture and design university campus.
Along with Graziano Verdi, President and CEO of Fiandre, Cucinella discussed real, concrete applications of sustainability in the world of design and in his projects all over the world.
 
Cucinella discussed his built projects and those currently under development and construction. 
“As the concept of environmental sustainability has evolved, we have moved in the direction of evolving materials, in which the materials themselves offer the solution to the problem. This means that materials become increasingly important as they are able to perform this role,” commented Cucinella.
“Innovation, competitiveness, quality and reliability are the key benefits of products ‘made in Italy’ and it is important to continue on this path. Italian industry has always had a talent for coming up with new ideas, but they must be translated into products, and this is by no means easy to do.”
Cucinella continued, “What we might call ‘human capital’ is at the centre of this evolution: we need to work hard to make sure that there is an appropriate transfer of information, which will in the future mean promotion of growing interest in the environment we live in, which does not belong to single individuals but to all.”
The projects mentioned include SIEEB, the innovative construction nicknamed the “leaf building” because it can transform light into solar energy, for which Cucinella chose Fiandre materials made according to the company’s traditional green policy.
 
Graziano Verdi emphasised the company’s concrete commitment to ongoing research, a feature that has allowed Fiandre to stand out over the years: “Sustainability is without a doubt the key theme of contemporary architecture, and Fiandre has applied the logic of innovation as the only method permitting enterprises to stay in business today and offer a better chance for tomorrow.” Verdi continued, “Mario Cucinella, who honoured us with his presence and provided an example of experience in environmentally sustainable architecture today, has been a true testimonial illustrating how use and promotion of new materials such as ACTIVE Clean Air & Antibacterial Ceramic^TM  is a trend that is undoubtedly destined to grow and make many converts in the future.”
 
The day concluded with an event at the Geologica showroom in Via Francesco Sforza 2 in Milan, where the city’s historic exhibition space was presented to the public in a new version renovated in partnership with Illum, an advanced lighting technology company which offers truly innovative solutions, like Fiandre. In the presence of architect Marco Visconti (Aedas-Visconti) and designer Stefano Pirovano (Bysteel), the participants discussed new coordinated lighting and architecture solutions.