led by SANAA, YACademy's alumni craft serpentine promenade out of wood and steel

Serpentine Promenade: Yacademy’s alumni led by SANAA

YACademy’s alumni realized Serpentine Promenade, developed for Cesare Roversi Arredamenti, led by the award-winning studio SANAA. The project was part of the ‘Making of a Factory’ initiative, which integrates educational training with real-world design applications. Based in Bologna, YACademy is an institute that connects young architects with leading firms in the field through a combination of lectures, practical workshops, and collaborative design projects. This particular intervention involved the construction of a transitional architectural element for the Cesare Roversi headquarters, intended to connect the company’s production facilities with its reception, exhibition, and office spaces.

all images by YACademy

Meandering Pathway Rooted in Landscape and Structure

The design team, comprising Matteo Marchese, Dinu Hoinarescu, and Federico Antonelli, developed the concept after the 2023 Architecture for Landscape course. The design was carried out with guidance from Francesca Singer, a partner at SANAA studio. The approach prioritized site sensitivity, focusing on integrating the new walkway with the existing buildings and natural surroundings. The resulting structure, named Serpentine Promenade, introduces a covered pathway that follows an organic, meandering layout through the interstitial space between buildings. The path weaves through mature vegetation, incorporating elements that reflect the site’s natural conditions and architectural context. The design takes into account light, shadow, materiality, and vegetation to create a continuity between built and natural environments.

Serpentine Promenade connects production and office areas at Cesare Roversi headquarters

Tactile Connections Between Nature and Built Form

Material selection reflects the existing architectural language and the company’s manufacturing focus. Wood, a primary material in Cesare Roversi’s production, is used extensively in the walkway. The structure’s canopy consists of thin steel tubes arranged to evoke vertical tree trunks, providing structural support while allowing filtered light to pass through, similar to the surrounding foliage. The project incorporates tones already present on site: the red of the brick facades and the green of the surrounding vegetation inform the color palette of the new addition. The promenade maintains a consistent dialogue with its surroundings by reproducing the interplay of light and shadow found in the existing environment. Ivy-covered walls, century-old trees, and climbing plants are preserved and highlighted by the architectural intervention. The structure seeks to blend into the site rather than contrast with it.

developed by YACademy alumni in collaboration with SANAA

Completed in 2024, Serpentine Promenade, a collaborative effort by YACademy’s alumni Matteo Marchese, Dinu Hoinarescu, Federico Antonelli, and SANAA, functions as a spatial and visual link within the company’s facilities, supporting circulation while reinforcing a cohesive architectural language. The intervention remains subordinate to its context, offering a non-intrusive but effective spatial solution that enhances the daily experience of the site’s users.

part of the ‘Making of a Factory’ initiative linking education with practice

designed to respect and integrate with existing structures and vegetation

canopy structure made from slender steel tubes resembling tree trunks

filtered light mimics the surrounding foliage’s natural shadow play

the promenade weaves through mature vegetation and ivy-covered walls

architecture blends subtly into its context rather than contrasting with it

lighting and materiality enhance visual continuity with the natural setting

project info:

name: Serpentine Promenade

architects: Yacademy’s alumni | @yacademy_bologna

collaborating architects: SANAA | @sanaa_jimusho
design team: Matteo Marchese, Dinu Hoinarescu, Federico Antonelli

client: Cesare Roversi headquarters

location: Moglia (MN), Italy

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edited by: christina vergopoulou | designboom