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THE IVREA BUILDING - THE 'BLUE HOUSE'

The Institute's home is the 'blue house', designed by Eduardo Vittoria in the 1950s as a research centre for the Olivetti group. A unique cross-shaped structure at the edge of a park, with exterior walls covered in blue ceramic tiles, the 'blue house' is a building full of light. Redesigned in 2000 by Sottsass Associati architect Marco Zanini, the building has been refined to nurture a sense of community and new technology research.

 

Marco Zanini explains: "It will be a space that allows many different kinds of activity, from sawing and knitting to building full-size installlations; from an electronic shop to a media lab. We will think like a dot.com operation in which people work around the clock, whenever they please. They will be able to eat, nap, shower, change clothes, watch TV. As much as possible, it will be a community and a place that nurtures teamwork, with open spaces where people can see and hear each other but with the possibility for a degree of privacy, when required. Technology will be state-of-the-art, to be used or hidden away when needed. It will be as unobtrusive as possible. The building will not be over-designed, because this is the place where design is to be born, and a neutral background is very important."

THE LAYOUT

The institute has four levels, each surrounded by terraces (ground floor) or balconies (upper floors). A wireless network for the terraces and grounds allows connectivity outside. In the basement are newly equipped workshops, an archive and a prototyping space suitable even for full-size installations. On the ground floor, there is a reception open 24 hours a day, a conference hall, a beautiful library, a gallery space for exhibitions, a lounge and a cafeteria. The first floor will be entirely dedicated to the students, with studios, lecture rooms and meeting spaces. Administration, professors' and tutors' offices as well as two research labs are on the second floor.