2nd International Interdisciplinary Conference in Gdańsk, Poland

20-21 September 2018

Experiencing the Continuity between

Consciousness and Places: the Role of Dreams,
Memory and Imagination in the Re-use Design of
Dismissed Heritage

ANNA ANZANI
MASSIMO SCHINCO

1
a trans-disciplinary approach to the re-use project of dismissed urban spaces is
proposed, through the activation, in the learning process, of generative aspects
based on the inescapable link between actions, relationships and emotions.

2
Outline

 Psychological theoretical framework

 Reuse Design principles

 Output from the groups of students

in this presentation, we will assume that
nocturnal (oneiric) creativity and daytime
creativity (for example, artistic or design) are
manifestations of the same function of the mind,
which however is expressed in different contexts
this was highlighted by Ernest Hartmann in his
latest works
for Schinco the systemic relational
component of this continuity was clear and
worth of more investigation, and in 2012 he
invited Hartmann to Italy to start a
comparison on this topic
the passing away of Hartmann in 2013
prevented further study together on this
subject
 Dreaming

Language,
Poetry translation

Bateson’s
Sacred
Relationships

Thymophor
Boundaries A basic unit of Archetypes,
creating myths, stories
Other arts,
music

Metaphor Hartmann, 2011,

modified by Schinco and
Fascia 2012
according to Schinco, the relational aspects of this
continuity come to light with particular clarity in several fields

the first is resilience

in the book "The Composer's Dream -
Essays on Dreams, Creativity and
Change" (2011) he widely illustrates
this point of view, highlighting the
continuity between the creativity that
at night is expressed in dreams, and
that which unfolds during the day

this, not only in the creation of

artworks, but also in human
relationships, especially those
featuring resilience
a further aspect in which the relational features of this
continuity emerge, is the ability to relate in a creative
way with the fragile and unacceptable aspects of
oneself and of the others
to deepen and develop
this issue in 2015 Schinco
gave rise to the
Eleogenetic Approach

Eleogenetics studies the

conditions for the
emergence (epiphany)
of relational contexts
characterized by
"mercy"

mercy consists in the

acceptance and
creative valorization of
what is fragile,
unacceptable, rejected,
in individuals and in
communities
in the overall elaboration of this view,
Schinco has found solid points of support,
technical and theoretical, as well as of
peculiar sensitivity, in the fundamental
work of Montague Ullman
as Judy Gardiner has masterfully illustrated,Ullman
points out that

“the dream is a metaphor in motion“,

and that

“dreams can offer an aesthetic and creative

approach to knowledge, oriented to wisdom, which
is complementary to the “objective” one of
science, rather than oriented to mastery”
metaphors in dreams reveal feelings,
which are the “stuff itself of reality”

“…that part of us which is linked to

others through feeling is more real, more
enduring and more significant than other
dimensions of our existence. It compels
belief. It dissolves distances, creates
unity and links us to the real world. This is
the stuff of reality”
from a theoretical point of view, Ullman's vision is
founded in David Bohm's theory of implicate orders

furthermore, it is compatible with the thought of

Henri Bergson, for whom "conscience is the
urgency of creation"
finally, it fits with the hypotheses of the theoretical
physicist Efstratios Manousakis (2006) on the nature
of consciousness

Manousakis claims that, rather than stubbornly

investigate consciousness through the study of
quantum physics, we should rather realize that the
rules of quantum physics reflect those of the
functioning of consciousness

in light of the above, the following cornerstones

emerge
1
consciousness and operations on it
are the primary reality to which we
refer

consciousness is not "produced" by 4 important regions of the stream of

2
the brain consciousness, both individual and global,
are in a "potential state" that can be
Individual "subfluxes of consciousness" actualized through mind operations
3
are part of a "global stream of
consciousness" that includes intuition works without the help of memory
5
everything that exists and has existed
both the production of theories and the
6 perception of matter imply the use of
memory and comparison

7 intuition and action are closely related to

each other
this set of abstract rules finds a practical and
experiential application in the Montague
Ullman's privileged tool for dreamworking

the group
the relational quality of group work is the bridge
that allows the transformation of night-time
dreamlike potential into day-time projects

as a teaching team, we have taken this

statement as a methodological pillar in carrying
out both the work between us and the work with
the students
in their design work, students are usually divided
into small work groups

the same small groups of students worked on

dreams following Ullman's method

in this way, the students discovered a creative

and emotional potential in group work they were
not used to, a quite unusual experience in the
ordinary university context

for some of them, the initial impact was not easy

Students were involved in a project of re-use of a
dismissed psychiatric hospital, a complex built between
1865 and 1960 .

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 A transdisciplinary approach, based on a
cross-fertilization process between psychology, interior
design and architectural restoration can help gaining
significant inspiration from the memory layered in
complex historical spaces, implementing innovation with
individual and community well-being and "happiness“.
 The project on
existing assets
should capture

the revolutionary
force of the past
(P. Pasolini)

listening to what the

built architecture is
able to transmit,
especially in terms
of latent
potentialities
to be developed in
an innovative and
sustainable way.
22
 LIVEABILITY

Space liveability is based not

only on rational and
functional aspects, but also
on values that allow us to feel
a sense of belonging with
places and to recognize
them, including them into our
inner maps.

23
 From an
anthropological point of
view, places that have
memory possess the
quality of making us
feel intimate with them.

24
 The intervention on
existing buildings
requires to apply
a “creative/critic"
dimension of memory
and at the same time
to propose innovative
models: this is required
by our biological
nature, strongly
connected to our
incessant evolutionary
process.
 Memory is not in our
heads, it is inscribed in
the world.

In our time, we are

experiencing a psychic
disorientation, a loss of
memory due to the
excess of construction,
development,
movement.

The continuous
destruction of buildings
for creating new ones
corresponds to a
lobotomy, a loss of
memories and images.

Restoration is a recovery
of memory,
the cure of amnesia.

(J. Hillman) 26
 Psychological values

“We don’t want to preserve past dimensions and images because we find them beautiful, or
maybe interesting and curious, but because they are part of our memory and therefore of our
precious psychological heritage” (R. Pane)
 Our body,
the host of our
individual
memory,
can be the
place of
pleasure
as well as of
blocks and
suffering.
 In the same way our city, the host of collective memory,
can be the place of utopic attraction as well as of disorientation.

29
 THE INVISIBLE CITY

We cannot touch the

unconscious with our
hands, yet it inhabits
every construction and
city, which each of us
dreams, remembers,
desires, imagines.

(M. Pignatelli).
IDENTITY

There are places that

have meanings for entire
communities, conveying
fragments that give
meaning to present days
and build our identity.
The assumption of consciousness as a
basic reality (see Manousakis, 2006)
guarantees the representation of us
as subjects, and of the objects in
space and time, in a frame of mutual
belonging, both as a community and
in our relation with the material
aspects of reality.
This is crucial in order to achieve the
knowledge required to get in a real
touch with the soul of a place.
 According to
Hillman, places
have a soul,
they are
populated with
different
deities, that
take on the
thoughts and
traditions of
people who
have lived
there for
centuries or
millennia.
The soul of
places
breathes
together with
the soul of the
world and our
soul.
 The intimate
quality of a
place is due
both to the
perception of
climate and
geography,
and to
IMAGINATION:
therefore,
staying in a
place for a long
time is
necessary so
that the
imagination
can respond. 34
Starting from the requests of a real
"client", a project/knowledge path
was developed in which the "mind"
and the "world" were the scene of
a discovery of oneself, one's
dreams and the generating power
of their sharing with a community.
35
Villa Pusterla Crivelli Arconati
end of 1600

bird view of mombello

phsychiatric hospital - 1865
Villa Pusterla Crivelli Arconati
nowadays

project of mombello phsychiatric

hospital - end of the 19th century
REHABILITATION COMMUNITY: MASTERPLAN
Students were required to use a creative dimension of
memory as well as to propose innovative models based on
the introduction of flexible, reversible, outfitting devices.
39
according to the opinion of the
teaching team, the effect of the group
work on dreams on the quality of the
design work has been very positive

some of the students' products were

truly touching and of high quality

40
41
Group 5
BRANDI DAVIDE
MANSUETO FEDERICA

WORKSHOP POP UP STORE

CALGARO PAOLO
CHERONI ELENA
STORTI CHIARA
CAPASSO GIORGIA
CORRENTI ELENA

CONCERT AREA REFRESHMENT AREA 42

43
Group 4
AIROLDI SARA
COLOSIO SIMONE
COMBI CHIARA
CORBETTA ANNA
ROSSI VALERIA
VALENTINI ALESSANDRO
VAVASSORI ANNA
Group 5
BRANDI DAVIDE
MANSUETO FEDERICA
CALGARO PAOLO
CHERONI ELENA
STORTI CHIARA
CAPASSO GIORGIA
CORRENTI ELENA

45
 Ground floor: children space

Group 5
BRANDI DAVIDE
MANSUETO FEDERICA
CALGARO PAOLO
CHERONI ELENA
STORTI CHIARA
CAPASSO GIORGIA
46
CORRENTI ELENA
First floor: elderly space
Group 5
BRANDI DAVIDE
MANSUETO FEDERICA
CALGARO PAOLO
CHERONI ELENA
STORTI CHIARA
CAPASSO GIORGIA
CORRENTI ELENA

47
Group 5
BRANDI DAVIDE
MANSUETO FEDERICA
CALGARO PAOLO
CHERONI ELENA “Past" pavilion “Present" pavilion
STORTI CHIARA
CAPASSO GIORGIA
“Future" pavilion
CORRENTI ELENA

“Present" pavilion
49
Group 4
AIROLDI SARA
COLOSIO SIMONE
COMBI CHIARA
CORBETTA ANNA
ROSSI VALERIA
VALENTINI ALESSANDRO
VAVASSORI ANNA
Group 4
AIROLDI SARA
COLOSIO SIMONE
COMBI CHIARA
CORBETTA ANNA
ROSSI VALERIA
VALENTINI ALESSANDRO
VAVASSORI ANNA
Group 4
AIROLDI SARA
COLOSIO SIMONE
COMBI CHIARA
CORBETTA ANNA
ROSSI VALERIA
VALENTINI ALESSANDRO
VAVASSORI ANNA
Group 4
AIROLDI SARA
COLOSIO SIMONE
COMBI CHIARA
CORBETTA ANNA
ROSSI VALERIA
VALENTINI ALESSANDRO
VAVASSORI ANNA
Group 4
AIROLDI SARA
COLOSIO SIMONE
COMBI CHIARA
CORBETTA ANNA
ROSSI VALERIA
VALENTINI ALESSANDRO
VAVASSORI ANNA
Group 1b
PERRONE ARIANNA
TORRES JAIME NATALIA SOFIA
ZHOU ZI YIN
Group 1b
PERRONE ARIANNA
TORRES JAIME NATALIA SOFIA
ZHOU ZI YIN
Group 3a
CORBASCIO NICOLÒ
Di FILIPPO SAMUELE
Group 3a
CORBASCIO NICOLÒ
Di FILIPPO SAMUELE
Group 3a
CORBASCIO NICOLÒ
Di FILIPPO SAMUELE
Group 7
COLIN LOUISE
ISABELLE
DI MAURO SIMONE
MEZZANO FRANCESCA
MONDATORE GIULIA
RICCI MARCO
TUMMINELLO
LEONARDO
Group 7
COLIN LOUISE ISABELLE
DI MAURO SIMONE
MEZZANO FRANCESCA
MONDATORE GIULIA
RICCI MARCO
TUMMINELLO LEONARDO
Group 7
COLIN LOUISE ISABELLE
DI MAURO SIMONE
MEZZANO FRANCESCA
MONDATORE GIULIA
RICCI MARCO
TUMMINELLO LEONARDO
 Group 7
COLIN LOUISE ISABELLE
DI MAURO SIMONE
MEZZANO FRANCESCA
MONDATORE GIULIA
RICCI MARCO
TUMMINELLO LEONARDO
 Group 7
COLIN LOUISE ISABELLE
DI MAURO SIMONE
MEZZANO FRANCESCA
MONDATORE GIULIA
RICCI MARCO
TUMMINELLO LEONARDO
 ONEIRIC OBJECT (A TANGIBLE DREAM)

Group 7
COLIN LOUISE ISABELLE
DI MAURO SIMONE
MEZZANO FRANCESCA
MONDATORE GIULIA
RICCI MARCO
TUMMINELLO LEONARDO
Group 4
AIROLDI SARA
COLOSIO SIMONE
COMBI CHIARA
CORBETTA ANNA
ROSSI VALERIA
VALENTINI ALESSANDRO
VAVASSORI ANNA
Group 4
AIROLDI SARA
COLOSIO SIMONE
COMBI CHIARA
CORBETTA ANNA
ROSSI VALERIA
VALENTINI ALESSANDRO
VAVASSORI ANNA
Group 5
BRANDI DAVIDE
MANSUETO FEDERICA
CALGARO PAOLO
CHERONI ELENA
STORTI CHIARA
CAPASSO GIORGIA
CORRENTI ELENA

ONEIRIC OBJECT
68