Traverso - Vighy Architects

Corte Bertesina

Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo

CORTE BERTESINA

Traverso-Vighy Architetti

ARCHITECTS
Traverso-Vighy Architetti

ARCHITECT IN CHARGE
Giovanni Traverso, Paola Vighy

STRUCTURAL DESIGN
Loris Frison

ELECTRICAL AND MECHANICAL DESIGN
Gruppo SIA

CLIENT
Azienda Agricola Corte Bertesina

LIGHTING COMPANY
L&L Luce&Light

CLIENT
Azienda Agricola Corte Bertesina

SAFETY
Giorgio Schettin

MANUFACTURERS
Luce&Light, Mitsubishi Electric, Bevilacqua Marmi srl, Carretta Serramenti, KLH

COLLABORATORS
Lucia Angelini, Cristina Baggio, Chiara Cavalieri, Stefania Dal Bianco, Giulio Dalla Gassa, Giulia Maria d’Arco, Aurelia Marzano, Grace Rome

PHOTOGRAPHS
Alessandra Chemollo

AREA
2258.0 m2

YEAR
2017

LOCATION
Vicenza,Italy

CATEGORY
Valley

Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo

Text description provided by architect.

Located on the outskirts of Vicenza and only 3km from Piazza dei Signori, Corte Bertesina is a typical, rural, nineteenth century Venetian courtyard connected to a 17-hectare country estate with certified organic gardens of vegetables, grains and fodder.

Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo
Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo

The gardens are protected inside a vast area planted in 2001 with trees native to the Po Valley. Since 2010, the estate also functions as a social farming center, offering job opportunities to young people with Down Syndrome.

The objective of the project has been to regenerate and complete the existing building core with the intention of developing new functional relationships: cultural and educational activities for the enhancement of the forest landscape, social farming activities through the involvement of young people with Down Syndrome, collaboration with local social cooperatives, preparation and sale of agricultural products, residences, bed and breakfast.

Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo
Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo

Additionally, the project aims to intervene into the natural context as lightly as possible, absorbing from the surroundings visual, energetic and wellness potential for its future inhabitants.

The concept of sustainability was a driving force behind the social intentions of the project, encompassing the wellbeing of its users, the choice of building materials and construction techniques, and energy production and use.

Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo
Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo
Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo

The space of the historic courtyard is defined on the south edge by a long, linear wall in local stone built using traditional methods.

The wall acts as a “filter” between public, social functions that occur in the courtyard and the private programs of the new residences.

Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo
Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo

The new residential volumes are articulated linearly: light structures, hinged onto a stone wall which sits on a large, underground floor conceived to house the residents’ vehicles.

A visual connection with the exterior landscape, the sun’s orientation and the control of natural ventilation are the main factors that informed the design solution.

The roof covering is shaped to control natural light and maximize its photovoltaic potential.

Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo
Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo

On the southeast, a simple volume clad in irregular larch planks completes the courtyard: it holds the cultural center, dedicated to the education and appreciation of the surrounding wooded landscape. 

Its glass wall guides the visitors’ attention towards the outdoor scenery and a network of trails inside the woodland.

From a construction standpoint, the intervention was approached with an innovative spirit, using the development of light, prefabricated construction methods which allowed the project to be concluded in a limited time frame.

Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo
Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo

The design process resembled that of an industrial product and defined various construction components in wood, steel and stone built off-site by a group of local industrial companies and artisans.

The components were than assembled on-site using tectonic connectors.

Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo
Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo
Corte Bertesina
© Alessandra Chemollo


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Traverso - Vighy Architects
T +39 0444 929056
Traverso - Vighy Architects
Via delle Querce, 22/a, 36030 Pignare, Costabissara VI, Italy