Presentation of the preliminary results of the RiconquistaMi project for the revitalization of the Piazza Leonardo Milano. ICSI Lugano, 2013. http://www.icsi.usi.ch

1. Ephemeral interactions to
revitalize public spaces.
RiconquistaMI Piazza
Leonardo, a case study.
Irina Suteu
irinamaria.suteu@polimi.com
Anna Moro
anna.moro@polimi.it
Politecnico di Milano

3. Issues:
- public place used as parking lot
- low community involvement and segregated users (polimi,
leonardo school, residents)
How to address them:
- 1. by using urban planning strategies
- 2. by engaging the neibourhood community

4. Objectives:1. Create a shared communication and design language between
academic and institutional partners.

5. Objectives:2. Involve local partners – citizens & non-profit organizations, local
administration.

6. Objectives:3. Create social cohesion, and an affective connection with the space by
promoting temporary events in the public space.

7. Several levels of interpersonal
interactions:
Backstage - clarifying the sequence of actions
and defining the individual roles in the project.
Intermediary – constructing the relationship and a
shared vocabulary with the public
administration representatives.
Implementation - Finding the best activities that
will respond the interest of the majority of users
and actors present on the territory.

8. Putting together a schedule of, actions and events and taking
into account the different users of the Piazza
Commercial events:
Farmers’ market, christmas
market, other.
Sport events
That don’t require a large budget and /or
are already planned, to be ri-directed in
Piazza leonardo.
Educational events:
That involve Politecnico along with the
local elementary school.
Cultural events:
Street artists and performers.
Theater performances, dance, concerts
and other.
Podisti da marte
Milano Monkeys
PlayMore
Genitori anti smog
Amici della Leonardo
Quelli di Grock
Effetto Larsen
AVTurnè
Il Filo di Paglia
Teatro Arsenale
Zona 3
farmers’ markets
Design phase

9. First series of actions RiconquistaMI:

10. Examples: stormo at polimi and then in piazza
Bringing the theater performance into the realm of
the academia.
Effetto Larsen – Stormo rEvolution _Kickoff event

11. Effetto Larsen – Stormo rEvolution – Kickoff event

12. Margherite in piazza. engaging the local residents and the
elementary school students to redesign part of the piazza.

13. MIMUOVO - Donaggio e Zorzi, IRS Milano -
Tracce di Sport, Comune di Milano, Ass.
Chiara Bisconti

14. Compagnia Karakorum
Engaging the general public into a ludic, varietè performance

16. Julia Binfield: 1000 cose +
leaving a trace on the pavement of the piazza. An
invitation to use the public space in many different
ways + encouraging diversity.

17. WORKSHOP “IMPRESSIONS/EXPRESSIONS”
RiconquistaMi “Dunque io son” performance by Maria
Carpaneto

18. Closing night RiconquistaMi “Dunque io son” performance

19. Breathrough achievements:
1. Turning a part of the piazza into a pedestrian area.
2. Gaining the permits to organize performative events and
visual art actions.
3. Moving towards the recognition of the public place as a
multifunctional space dedicated to social interactions.
Lessons learnt:
1. The change has to be incremental in order to be accepted by
the local community.
2. Time plays an essential role in modifying the perception of a
certain space in two ways: a. short term: understanding the
best moment to propose the actions for different participants
and audience; b. long term: planning ongoing interventions
and monitoring the use of the space.
3. The involvement of the design team in the activities is
essential for understanding the social interactions in space.

20. Thank you!
www.smartplanpolimi.wordpress.com
Facebook: Riconquista_MI