common wood restoration procedure

1. dismantling
2. repair and/or replacement
3. chemical treatment
4. re-painting or re-varnishing
5. reinstallation of structural and finishing units
common stone restoration procedure
1. removal of concrete plaster from stone walls
2. surface preparation
a. mechanical cleaning: vegetation removal
b. chemical cleaning: herbicide, biocide, Benzalkonium Chloride
3. stabilization of rubble core (consolidation by limewater) and application of
lime-based mortar into unreinforced masonry walls
4. consolidation by calibrated flexible epoxy injection on stone walls with
hairline cracks
5. re-pointing of masonry gaps
6. repair and replacement of damaged/missing blocks
7. application of water repellent solution as protective coating for masonry
surfaces
renewing historic centers: strategies and
practices

• depopulation → abandonment → physical and social

decay

• case studies:
• Regeneration : Matera (in Basilicata)
• Policies : 1-Euro Houses Program
• Economics : Santo Stefano di Sessiano
• Social agenda : Riace
renewing historic centers: strategies and
practices
• Matera (regeneration)
• Sassi (“the stones”): cave dwellings in Matera
• not only a small town, but an important regional city
• transformed to boutique hotels for tourists
• full tour of cities for €20.00 (~ ₱1,200.00)
• unique accommodations even for the Italians
• Still, something had been lost in the regeneration process.
• other cons:
• tourist congestion
• aftermath of world events
• strong gentrification process
• loss of authenticity
• non-reproducible processes
photo: https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/04/14/17/332E8F6700000578-0-image-a-5_1460650424365.jpg
photo: https://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/esmagazine/matera-basilicata-where-to-eat-drink-and-stay-in-southern-italy-a3373611.html
photo: https://www.booking.com/hotel/it/sassi.html
renewing historic centers: strategies and
practices
• 1-Euro Houses Program (policies)
• Original owners donate buildings to municipalities.
• Municipalities sell buildings for a symbolic fee. (Most are in ruined state.)
• Buyers must produce a renovation project within a year of purchase.
• They have to sustain all expenses for registration and notary fees.
• Renovation work must start within 60 days of obtaining permits.
• Buyers make €5,000.00 (~₱280,000.00) cautionary deposit, reimbursed after three
years.
• Buyers sustain all costs for renovation [range from €50,000.00 (~₱2.8M) upwards].
• Renovation work receives a 50% tax break up to €96,000.00 (~₱5.36M) per
national law.
• Further benefits for energy improvement, seismic retrofit, etc.
renewing historic centers: strategies and
practices
• 1-Euro Houses Program
pros cons
attractive economic opportunity few new permanent residents
because foreigners buy
properties
new population and activities fragmented property
increase of tourist sector Tax breaks are only available
for fiscal residents.
no public expenditure stifling bureaucracy
very limited effects
renewing historic centers: strategies and
practices
• Santo Stefano di Sessiano (economics)

• just at the feet of tall mountain ranges in Italy (Apennine regions)

• An entrepreneur purchased 10 abandoned buildings and formed a

distributed hotel. (Rooms are scattered throughout the village inside
historical buildings.)

• high-end tourist flow; not for mass tourism

renewing historic centers: strategies and
practices
• Santo Stefano di Sessiano

pros cons
depopulation stopped gentrification
remote location bad tourism
revival of traditional crafts
All economic resources are
public.
gentler and more considerate
conservation
photo: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/8a/a1/f2/8aa1f280c750349ead80bc337ba3b778.jpg
renewing historic centers: strategies and
practices
• Riace, Calabria (social agenda)
• In the late 1990s, Mimmo Lucano, then mayor, opened up Riace through boats
to host migrants in unused buildings.
• €35.00 (~₱2,000.00) per day per person national subsidy for refugees
• became a candidate for Nobel Prize for Peace

pros cons
social agenda political determination issue
not constant supporting resources
renewing historic centers: strategies and
practices

• general issues:

• lack of foresight in planning → fast-food tourism

• Building process in Italy is extremely regulated.

regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures

• All landscapes are an interaction of mankind and nature.

• “Heritage” VS “heritage”
↓ ↓
with significance everyday life
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures
Heritage state
preservation active participation active intervention
*restoration and conservation
*huge cost
*a very small number of sites
protection active participation passive intervention
*care and maintenance *listing and designation
*custodianship and stewardship *a slightly larger number but
*can be applied extensively still small
*not applied to all
appreciation active participation no intervention
heritage community
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures
URBAN
attractions of heritage
NATURAL CULTURAL BUILT
topography, farming practice, monuments,
rural scenery, traditional customs, cities, towns,
flora and fauna, arts, crafts, festivals, villages,
farmlands, rituals, products, buildings, sites
etc. gastronomy

RURAL
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures

six strategies of “RURITAGE”

pilgrimage local food migration art and resilience landscape

festival
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures

• a community of past, present, and future

• a community of place and interest

• “We” is impossible to define.

• unless the definition is about whom to exclude
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures

• “RURITAGE” case study on ART AND FESTIVAL

• Echigo-Tsumari Art Field Triennale, Japan
• grand exhibition in 2000 for two months
• installation art on rice fields
• The weather-resistant artworks were kept and became local monuments.
• Some artists come to the place to live there.
• interactive arts
• Art Front Gallery, Tokyo, a non-profit organization initiated the project.
photo: https://universes.art/fileadmin/user_upload/Biennials/Echigo-Tsumari/2018/Img-final/13-Ri-Eung-woo-A.jpg
photo: https://i.imgur.com/gYpH1U4.jpg
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures

• “RURITAGE” case study on ART AND FESTIVAL

• 2018 Yanping Rural Art Harvest, Nanping City, Fujian Province, PRC
• November 2018 to February 2019
• sense of place
• sense of pride
• Local builders explain vernacular techniques to visitors.
• Artists will live in the village and interact with the locals.
photo: https://archive.shine.cn/newsimage/2018/11/02/020181102190540.bmp
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures

• “RURITAGE” case study on ART AND FESTIVAL

• Vercorin, Switzerland
• ski resort village’s marketing strategy
• organized by small associations called R and Art, paid by local community
• held yearly
• Paint the Village
photo: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/63/6d/a5/636da50be9ca4a40cffd6f81719b1378.jpg
photo: https://www.gwarlingo.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Varini-Switzerland-Village.jpg
photo: https://www.gwarlingo.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Varini-Switzerland-Detail.jpg
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures

• “RURITAGE” case study on LOCAL FOOD

• Coffee Cultural Landscape, Colombia
• landscape of production
• six farming landscapes
• World Heritage Site (strict regulation)
photo: https://worldheritage.si.edu/assets/img/coffee/Cafetales_de_Quinchia_(Risaralda).jpg
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures

• “RURITAGE” case study on LOCAL FOOD

• Geofood - local food branding, Norway
• brand for local food in UNESCO Global Geoparks
• geological heritage and local communities
• serves at least 50% of local raw materials
photo: https://www.geofood.no/
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures

• “RURITAGE” case study on LOCAL FOOD

• Bombay Sapphire Distillery, Hampshire, UK
• industrial site situated in a rural setting
• used to be Laverstoke Mill (1917)
• made the finest quality paper for money of the British empire
• turned into a gin distillery
• now an experiential space for visitors to learn the gin-making process and
make their own drink too
photo: https://www.tagvenue.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/531-bombay-sapphire-distillery-venue.jpg
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures

• “RURITAGE” case study on LANDSCAPE

• Honghe Hani Rice Terraces, Southern Yunnan, PRC
• made it to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2013
• economic and social cost
• training people
• sustaining the practice of farming
photo: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Terrace_field_yunnan_china_denoised.jpg
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures

• “RURITAGE” case study on LANDSCAPE

• Reused Quarries, Songjiang District, Shanghai, PRC
• part of Chenshan botanical garden, 2010
• converted to:
1. fee-charging park: ¥60.00 (~₱450.00)
2. Intercontinental Shanghai Wonderland Hotel, 2018:
• ¥4,000.00/night (~₱29,000.00)
• underground hotel
• from an abandoned landscape
photo: https://www.elitereaders.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/underground-hotel.jpg
regenerating rural communities through
landscapes and cultures

• PPP: public-private partnership (semi-public)

• bottom-up approach
• global vision
• multiple stakeholders
• enjoining the community to feel that they are part of the
action
• sociologic approach
methodology and principles
• case study 1: Borgo Egnazia, South Italy
• empty (no people)
• Houses seem alike.
• new construction (2007-2016)
• where Madonna had her 59th birthday
• dubbed as “the best resort in the world”
• 100% fake
• ✓ thoroughly designed at the basis of typological analysis
•  no inhabitants; “Madonna effect” = tourists
photo: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/c2/b3/75/c2b37572d041eeeff6b3648cfbe848c8.jpg
methodology and principles
• case study 2: Piazza Alicia, Salemi, Sicily
• redesign of streets and public spaces
• minimum intervention on pavements
• Materials fit in perfectly and will age well with older ones.
photo: https://www.dreamsicilyvillas.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/DSC_1221.jpg
methodology and principles
• case study 3: Piazza Lancellotti by Francesco Venezia, Lauro,
Avellino (1984)
• detail within the whole
• whole within the detail
methodology and principles
• case study 4: Grande Cretto by Alberto Burri, Gibellina, Sicily
(1981)
• series of works of art, using vinylic material that cracks eventually
due to mixture
• art provocation
• archaeological stimulation for expression
• very much set in the landscape
• contrast of what had aged and what is new
photo: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Ruderi_di_Gibellina.jpg
methodology and principles
• Architects and urbanists should think of PROCESSES, not
SOLUTIONS.
• assess:
• societal variety
• monumental architecture
• poverty and normality
• urban fabric
• The people should also participate in values assessment.
• a game for everyone where everybody’s playing and winning
group field work in case village

• analysis of the heritage resources of the case village,

Dong-Xi Cai
• a long-term strategic plan
• an action plan
• proposed guideline/intervention/starting point for its
revitalization
group field work observations
• poor legibility, orientation, and way-finding
• sections of the streets have remained
• fitting the needs of the people
• walls of houses are as constant as old structures
• North-South axis ends up to the green areas (mountains and gardens)
• Low wall planters alternating with empty lots minimize fire hazards and
help small houses to have green space.
• The value of the body of water that used to connect to Tai Lake (tai
means big) is for laundry purposes.
group field work observations
• functional street sections: gutters and ducts at either side of the streets
• Electric lines are in the way everywhere.
• identified three main layers:
• 1800 Qing-type buildings: variable in size, adapt to the place, display the
gardens
• 50s-60s-type buildings: Techniques do not weather well. Stiff walls were
added without regard to the vicinity.
• 90s-type buildings
• Streets are not only physical but also historical elements of the village.
• Residents are mostly the older population who appear to be happy
and do not complain about their situation.
group field work synthesis
POTENTIALITIES PROBLEMS
• long history of the village (intangible and • depopulation of younger generation
tangible)
• existence of small local industries • existence of declined and decayed areas
• being rich in: (buildings that are in need of repair and
• gardening and existence of fruit processing restoration)
industry as a result
• natural (landscape, smell-scape, etc.) and
built heritage (Chun Xi Tang) • lack of economic motivation
• existence of some potential local
entrepreneur (wealthy families)
• implementation of some rehabilitation
projects (Chun Xi Tang)
• tourism opportunities
group field work synthesis
GENERAL FRAMEWORK (VISION/PLANNING STRATEGY)
• high regard for the presence of the government in the village
• concept of power provided by the existing political setting in the village
• focusing on identity
• optimizing landmarks of the village
• structures (Chun Xi Tang)
• improving legibility
• optimizing markers of the village
• cultivation (especially fruits)
• sense of pride (sense of place)
• preservation of the historic fabric of the village
• real values and assets of the community
group field work synthesis
SIGNIFICANT STRATEGIES
• SMELL-SCAPE
• Allocate a visible open public space inside the village to showcase the fruit
industry:
• from preparation after harvesting
• to the production of the final products (jam, dried fruits, etc.).
• small packaging or packing facility beside the open space
• can be an adaptively re-used building
• marketing
• consistency with the showcase process
• can foster the smell of the place or the existing smell-scape
• will create an open public space that can provide more interaction
• can improve local income
group field work synthesis
SIGNIFICANT STRATEGIES

• The villagers can get involved into partnership with entrepreneurs

(especially local investors).

• CHUN XI TANG
• repair and rehabilitation
• Incorporate the local industry’s process in possible exhibits (for museum spaces)
• Highlight the white tree, which has big historical value being one of the oldest
trees in Suzhou.
comprehensive heritage planning process

physical legal economic social political

shift and/or expand our conservation mindset

restoring
PLANNING
individual
heritage clusters
historic buildings
references
Castro, M., (2020, March 20). Echo-seminar [PowerPoint slides]. Advanced Course
on Conservation and Restoration Techniques of Traditional Architecture for
the Asia Pacific Region
De Matteis, F., (2019, June 9). Renewing historic centers: strategies and practices
[Lecture notes]. Advanced Course on Conservation and Restoration
Techniques of Traditional Architecture for the Asia Pacific Region
National Historical Commission of the Philippines
Salvo, S., (2019, June 9). Methodology and principles on field work [Lecture notes].
Advanced Course on Conservation and Restoration Techniques of
Traditional Architecture for the Asia Pacific Region
Yiwen, W., (2019, June 9). Regenerating rural communities through landscapes and
cultures [Lecture notes]. Advanced Course on Conservation and Restoration
Techniques of Traditional Architecture for the Asia Pacific Region