davide macullo plants 'Ispace' in the forests of a swiss village

architect davide macullo has hidden a timber installation within the forests of rossa, a swiss village in the calanca valley. forming part of a series called ‘Ispace’, the structure is one of ten architectural sculptures planned for the region. ‘Ispace is an invitation to discover the paths through the valley and reveals the richness of biodiversity and magic hidden corners of the forest,’ explains the team behind the project.

all images by corrado griggi

the project, undertaken by davide macullo architects — with the support of the rossarte foundation, the municipality of rossa, and the swiss national park val calanca — involved the inhabitants of the valley, visitors, and institutions working towards a common goal. the project also seeks to contribute to the debate on the enhancement of rural areas in general. the planned interventions form part of the wider work of the foundation, giving rossa and val calanca an identity as a destination for work and life, as well as tourism.

the work of davide macullo’s studio is centered on the awareness that architecture is the link between the DNA of a place and its future. the series of drawings ‘man seeking space’ — seen in the gallery at the bottom of this page — imagine humanity’s constant search to find the ideal space and scale at which to feel at ease. it is this idea that informs the architecture of Ispace. the perception of space through the senses is central to the work of macullo’s studio, which began in the 1980s during the architect’s studies under professor luis flotron in lugano.

‘the intervention in the woods acts to counterbalance the current trend of exponential development of technologies that will alter the way humans build their habitat,’ explains davide macullo architects. ‘the selection of native material; larch trees cut on site to deforest the areas on the slopes of the valley involved in the archaeological restoration of the ancient terraces, is the first sign of sensitivity to the environment and uses the material to the best of its evocative power. the purity of design thinking and the almost absence of particular construction techniques remind us of a work that does not need to declare a temporal condition to emphasize the centrality of the relationship between man and nature.’