AMAA's 'pleonastic is fantastic' stair floats within a derelict brickwork ruin

with respect for the the tension between old and new, italian architecture studio AMAA introduces its work, ‘pleonastic is fantastic.’ the revitalization project, captured by simone bossi, is defined by a stair which is seemingly suspended in perfect balance within the space, independent from the slab and the walls.   the team celebrates the characteristics of ‘pleonasm,’ or redundancy as the pleonastic elements of the work — namely, the floating stair — are not structurally necessary. the supportive strut is, in turn, a redundant moment. the team notes that the resulting stair does not interfere with the beauty and the fragility of the wooden slab and the load-bearing brick and stone walls, ‘that’s how the stairway from being pleonastic becomes fantastic.’

images © simone bossi | @simonebossiphotographer

a connective element between two worlds, AMAA‘s ‘pleonastic is fantastic’ stair is at once a rising pathway and a scenographic background. the escherian element is embraced by and integrated into the space, and simultaneously stands as an intrusive addition that demarcates the tension between old and new. the stairway rises out of the new concrete ground plane which, together with its perimeter, allows a three-centimeter reveal along the walls. this subtle detail serves to embrace the natural, rusticated crumbling of the inner walls’ surfaces.

with its ‘pleonastic is fantastic’ intervention, AMAA revitalizes the derelict building in lonigo. the northern italian structure is characterized by thick stone walls and by a timber roof truss, timber beams, and clay tiles. the meticulous restoration involved the careful search and the recovery of salvaged materials from other similar local sites to be integrated into the original roof. the team introduces handcrafted and rusted steel window fixtures highlighted by delicate handles, along with the restoration of the original wooden floor, completing the conservation project.