iotti + pavarani architects designs europe's largest open air venue located in italy

designed by iotti + pavarani architetti, tassoni + partners and lauro sacchetti associati, the rcf arena will be built on an airfield in reggio emilia, in the italian region of emilia romagna. due for completion in september 2020, the project will be the first in europe specifically designed for live open air musical events capable of hosting 100,000 people. the design guarantees concert-goers and event attendees the best possible conditions of use, safety, acoustics and visibility.

the designers conceived reggio emilia’s rcf arena in such a way as to ensure the spaces involved can be organised and modulated according to different functions. the green arena, for international events attracting up to 100,000 people, boasts a slope of 5% to guarantee all members of the audience a perfect view and optimum acoustics. the concert area is designed for national events while the reception area enables light and temporary structures to be built, facilitating the management of the reception of the crowds at both large-scale and smaller events. 

the whole complex is immersed in an urban park close to the city, using the non-operational part of the air-field. it spans a surface area of more than 20 hectares that were developed to carry out new functions and avoid the building over lush, green areas. reggio emilia’s rcf arena is a highly sustainable project, designed to ensure maximum safety and ease of access due to its proximity to both the regular and high speed railway stations. 

the project takes full advantage of a location at the heart of the region of emilia-romagna, a strategic point within population centres boasting a total of 7.5 million potential users within an hour’s travel time from the site. the design for the arena park is intended to make up an organic, unitary and easily recognizable system. it makes available a number of different uses for the open space, offering different opportunities, each with its own positive effect on the social, cultural and economic life of the city and wider territory. 

the design concept involves the transformation of the whole area through an intervention of landscape design and creating a network of pathways. the architects remodelled the terrain, and made landscaping operations and environmental engineering processes in order to unify the accessibility to the spaces. the spacious boulevard forms the open reception area, and the great bowl of the event arena, the service areas and back-stage, all fall under a single and clearly recognisable symbol. the stadium is meant to represent a landmark in the region, while being discreet within the landscape, yet have a strong presence within the region.

following the official presentation of the design by iotti + pavarani architetti, tassoni + partners and lauro sacchetti associati, construction began in april 2018, while the inauguration and opening to the public is planned for september 2020.

project info:

project name: rcf arena

design: iotti + pavarani architetti, tassoni + partners and lauro sacchetti associati

location: reggio emilia, emilia romagna, italy

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edited by: cristina gomez | designboom