Piazza Della Scala, Milan - Massimo Gnocchi Architects

The envisioned project for the redesign of Piazza Scala aims to establish a new urban center, a place of gathering, exhibition, entertainment, and grandeur that allows for a dynamic and intense use of this part of the city, enhancing the relationship of this space with the surrounding buildings and the urban and cultural context.

The square's dichotomy with the city has been addressed and overcome by creating a new relationship with the surrounding buildings, especially with the Teatro alla Scala, which becomes the generator of the new design of the square, reestablishing a balance and dialogue with it. From the current design of the square, the most significant elements were chosen to be retained, including the statue, the fountain, and the architectural elements designed by Beltrami, which are reinvigorated with renewed modernity in the new urban scenario.

Team

CSMA Architects
Arch. Salvatore Barbiera
Arch. Marco Scarpinato
Arch. Marco Strucchi
Arch. Massimo Gnocchi

The masterplan

Formal and functional considerations

The design of the square is generated by the relationships and alignments of the buildings that impose upon it: the grid formed by the interaction of these urban forms becomes the pattern upon which the architectural elements are grafted. The rigidity of this scheme thus embraces the force of the theater: the latter "bending and deforming it" creates a small amphitheater that, with a gentle set of steps, becomes a connecting point between the two urban areas.

The traffic system has undergone few changes: the remaining part of the square is resolved by working on Largo Raffaele Mattioli, turning it into a green area connected to a tree-lined avenue, thus preventing "wild parking" while at the same time allowing the controlled passage of vehicles with special permits.