The heritage of the italian artist Costantino Nivola is concentrated in his homeland, Orani. The Nivola museum’s collection is growing and the body of the museum are constantly expanding. Both the museum's program and new contemporary features are being integrated: ‘today the Nivola art collection is becoming more and more the cultural and social reference point of the town and the entire surrounding region’, as stated in the brief. The large territory of the Sardinian olive grove overlooking the panorama of the city of Orani is perceived not only as an opportunity to accommodate tourists-visitors overnight and thereby keep them in the area. In my proposal, this area is primarily an extension of the museum, and the main function remains to exhibit the magnificent works of art of Nivola, but in a more natural environment – in the open air among the olive trees. As the art garden in his courtyard on Long Island. For each sculpture I propose a special stylobate that emphasizes and articulates the sculpture. And the rooms are located in the thickness of this stylobate.

A night at the museum is a unique experience. A night at the museum should be remembered as something special. Therefore, I do not strive to comply with the standards and rules for designing rooms for daily rent, but on the contrary, I try to get away from the usual forms, inscribing the living space in the “back room” of the museum. Each room has a window towards the city and a door yet to be found.

In my proposal, 7 artifacts are presented, loosely placed on the territory, depending on the relief, view axes and the location of olive trees. Living spaces are hidden in five artifacts, the remaining two are common spaces intended for leisure and communication of guests, social and cultural events etc. The stage with a breathtaking view of the city serves as a platform for performances not only in the museum, but also for the comune of Orani.

[the monumental – the ordinary] the new spatial condition is the transformation of the ordinary to the monumental. as the act of mining lose its substantial value, it becomes a symbol. while the museum celebrates commemorative signi-flcance as a form of monument that is differentiated from the ordinary, the project proposes an alternate interpretation of the confrontation between the ordinary and the monumental: apposition. the present ordinary is captured within the form of monumental, where both are given commemorative signi-flcance, where the otherwise unrecognized ordinary becomes just as memorable as the monumental.

[the object – the non-object] when the ordinary and the monumental are con-flned by the same spatial dimension, monumentality is no longer de-flned by scale, but solely by its properties as an object. as the regular grid cuts into the hill, individual monoliths extracted. these monoliths become objects while voided unitary space within the grid becomes non-object.

[the appreciated – the experienced] the grid that cuts into terrain creates two realms. it de-flnes, within itself, identically dimensioned space created from excavation – the experienced realm. here, spaces are experienced in the form of ordinary wander and encounters. spiral stairs in some of the courtyards connect the experienced realm to the upper platform – the appreciated realm. here the monoliths are monuments, protected, controlled, to be viewed at distance. It is a living museum where sculpted monoliths anchor the two realms: the ordinary “living” experienced in space within the grid coupled with the monumental “museum” above where objects are appreciated.

The proposal for the Nivola Museum's accommodation facility is the result of a careful study of the site, of its history and of the analysis of the spontaneous architecture that dots and has dotted the Sardinian hinterland for centuries. This Architecture is characterised by a strong introverted and defensive character, based on the profound bond between man and the land. It is precisely this link between man and land that gives rise to the idea of designing a reception structure that allows the user to live the authentic and symbolic experience of descending into the bowels of the earth.

A long retaining wall, built using the local raw earth construction system, unfolds like a line that follows the curves of the land. The line physically and metaphorically connects the museum to the pre-existing dry-stone wall, where a small cavea for outdoor meetings has been added.

Our intention is to design a narrative sequence of experiences that have to do with the memory of these places. Leaving the museum square to the south, one -flnds himself in a walk among the many olive trees, in which one can recognize stairs leading up to the rooms. Descending symbolically and physically into earth, we -flnd ourselves inside rooms that has a relation with the outside, framing the landscape.

The project does not insist on de-flning a particular form, but rather conceives architecture as a question of relationships generated by geometry and perceptions. An architecture conceived to disappear and become landscape.

The project draws inspiration from the history and the unique nature of the beautiful barbaricino landscape, dominated by the presence of olive trees and typical Mediterranean maquis. The interventions aims to create a place of interaction and creativity by establishing a dialogue between project and landscape, and re-connecting to the cultural traditions of Orani and Sardinia.

The excavated mountain overbearing the town de-flnes and protect at the same time the area of intervention. Back in the time this place, historically known as “sa Macchina de sa Zarra”, had been used as a quarry for the extraction and production of gravel. Once the activity ceased, the site has been conquered by nature and fauna, nevertheless becoming a gathering spot for young people after school. The names “Zarra Pavilions” recalls the memory of the place and marks a line of continuity with the past.

On the track of the existing walls, eight open air rooms, looking back at Nivola's spatial research, de-flne an alternance of public and private spaces, each one reclines upon the ground in a particular way. These translucent capsules rest on a dry-stone wall basements recalling the muri a secco existing in the site. The walls and pergolas in oxidized wood are placed as sculptures among the grey shades of olive trees branches, organizing the space in a continuous alternance of interior and exterior spaces. The glass ref1ecting the surrounding vegetation and the local material adopted allow the project to vanish into the landscape.

The Making Retreat is to create a retreat of sand-casting school with short-term workshop or long-term apprenticeship programs for sand-casting enthusiasts. It includes an accommodation for this artisan community, embracing this re-introduced material culture, as a new way of working, as well as a new way of living.

The dire need for people to reconnect with their awareness is ever higher especially in the time of pandemic, as well as the in the time of excessive use of smart objects and overexposure to digital media. In here, visitors could experience sand-casting, adopting the “slow culture” by carving out time for making, regaining touches with materials of the earth and human hands, as well as the history of the Nivola Museum and Orani.

The design begins with the principle of sand-casting, from carving void to casting solid, makes up two main parts of the Making Retreat. The cave-like spaces, carved from the mountain where Nivola Museum sits on, are the major part as the sand-casting school and accommodation. This spatial treatment generates a building that at -flrst glance appears to be as natural as the mountain itself, however on closer inspection, new unconventional relationships emerge.

Opposite to this part is the Path of Casting with concrete stelas and natural rocks aside. They are spaced apart with rocks, to allow vision to the village of Orani in different angles and individual passage through the gap. The lower pieces allow visitors to climb on to have the wide view, refreshing their memory of Orani through this experience.

Retreat as an art-historical room type can be de-flned as Renaissance Studiolo: a minimal space, aimed at studying and working, a place of refuge and intimacy, later becoming a representative exhibition space.

This historical room type is reinterpreted in the context of Orani – on a site which appears as a form of retreat – being a public add-on to the residential program. The 5 units – 3 for double occupancy, 2 singles – are unique combinations of public and private space. The public space, as an extension of the museum program, is curated and aimed at working and exhibiting. This space encourages the exchange between the temporary unit dwellers, the museum visitors and the community of Orani. The private residential space is minimal and intimate, remaining hidden within rammed earth walls.

Vuoto – the void – being an en-fl lade of living spaces with a parallel public corridor ending in a void for sculptures. Breccia – the breakthrough – in the existing stone wall creates a semicircular public space and a parallel residential sequence. Gemelli – the twins – are playing with the balance of volume and platform, one as the living space the other as an open public space. Giardino – the garden – with a public space behind the 3 m high walls, sharing one window with the hidden living space. Torre – the tower – with a minimal living space, half-buried in the earth and an open public staircase above it. The materiality is rammed earth, with stone and metal elements for some public components.

Our pavillions create links between the millenary Nuraghic architectural tradition, and the disappearing industrial activities of the region: mining operations. There was no doubt that to honor the site, its historical content and the work of Costantino Nivola, our pavillions have to be made of stone. In the very typical climate of that region, stones preserve coolness in the summer and provide shaded shelter in which winds and air can circulate.

Composed of 9 to 11 blocks of stone, the pavilions fade into the landscape and become part of the park. Blurred limits between interior and exterior will allow visitors to build strong connections with the site and really feel its special atmosphere.

While the bedroom is perfectly protected from the environement and equipped of a -flreplace, the kitchen, dining area and bathroom facilities are protected by a light cane reed shading. Each space is organized along a main circulation punctuated by large blocks.

The blocks of stone would be directly excavated from the mines of Sa Matta, located at less than 4 kilometers from the park and operated by IMI Fabi. Steatite is a mineral mainly composed of talc. It is really easy to sculpt with and it becomes very strong by hardening over time.

By using that local resource in a very expressive way, we intend to demonstrate that designing a construction that -flts sinto its context, is not just about considering the landscape, but also the cultural and historical dimensions of the site.