Revitalizing Venice: David Chipperfield Architects Transform the Historic Procuratie Vecchie into a Modern Marvel

Saint Mark's Square is one of the world's most recognizable squares and an extraordinary example of an ordered public space. It is defined on three of its four sides by the Procuratie Vecchie, Procuratie Nuove, and Procuratie Nuovissime. The Procuratie Vecchie was developed along the North side of the square in the first half of the 16th century, under the renovation urbis programme of the Doge of the Republic of Venice, Andrea Gritti. Three architects, Mauro Codussi, Bartolomeo Bon, and Jacopo Sansovino, established the modern ancient language adopted by the subsequent developments of the other Procuratie on the West and South sides of the square.

Generali, which has acquired almost the entirety of the Procuratie Vecchie, has set a goal to bring the building into a closer relationship with Venice. To do this, they opened the third attic floor of the Procuratie Vecchie to the public for the first time in half a century. David Chipperfield Architects Milan has developed a project that is not defined by a single architectural gesture, but rather by a series of interventions that address the complexity of the work. These interventions are flexible and interpret both the historical modifications and practical adaptations of the Procuratie Vecchie.

The Interventions undertaken at the Generali insurance company included the Restoration of the first and second floors, the Reorganisation of accessibility and usability through the inclusion of new vertical circulation, and the Renovation of the third floor, with public access to the exhibition spaces, workspaces, event spaces and an auditorium linked to The Human Safety Net. Traditional and local construction techniques were employed, such as pastellone and terrazzo, marmorino and scialbatura, as well as cocciopesto and cotto, in order to reclaim the integrity of the building, which has been present in Venice for hundreds of years.