Giving life and continuity back to a symbolic place of the Italian Renaissance without altering its identity: this is the challenge at the center of the project that gave shape to the Loggia of the Palazzo dei Diamanti in Ferrara, one of the most important architectural redevelopment interventions of recent years.
The work, commissioned as a public work and signed by the Labics studio (Maria Claudia Clemente and Francesco Isidori), was born from the desire to mend the two wings of the museum complex, restoring full accessibility to the brolo, the internal garden which for centuries has constituted the green heart of the palace.
The new loggia does not impose itself, but accompanies. It is a linear and light structure that crosses the courtyard like a threshold of balance between nature and architecture, between memory and innovation.
An intervention that shows how, even in contexts of historical protection, it is possible to insert tailor-made wooden structures that dialogue with the past without imitating it, enhancing it through a contemporary and sustainable language.
The architectural challenge for the Palazzo dei Diamanti
Labics’ idea starts from an essential consideration: the Palazzo dei Diamanti, Biagio Rossetti’s masterpiece, is an architectural organism perfect in its symmetry and urban balance. Every addition risks altering the perception.
Hence the need to design a reversible connection, capable of solving functional needs (joining the museum routes of the two wings), but without permanently affecting the original structure.
The loggia develops like a walkway approximately 70 meters long, supported by a modular system that adapts to the layout of the garden. The sliding and removable windows create a covered path that protects visitors, but lets light filter through and the view towards the greenery.
It is an architecture that “does not close”, but which transforms the passage into experience. Every choice, from the rhythm of the openings to the size of the portals, was calibrated to respect the visual balance of the site and the volumetric perception of the entire complex.
The loggia thus becomes a conceptual bridge between past and present: a structure that does not claim to belong to the same era as the palace, but which continues its lesson of clarity, measure and proportion.
The symbolic value of burnt wood
To give shape to this idea of lightness and memory, Labics chose burnt wood, a material that combines durability, sustainability and aesthetic value.
The controlled fire treatment, derived from the Japanese technique shou sugi bancreates a black and material surface, capable of resisting time and atmospheric agents, while recalling the ancient pergolas that crossed the Renaissance orchard.
The wood, burnt but vital, becomes a symbol of renewed beauty without erasing the traces of the past. Its dark shade interacts with the light stone of the building and the diamond-cut geometries of the facade, creating a harmonious contrast that enhances both materials.
In the loggia every detail, from the sections of the portals to the gaps between the modules, has been studied to express compositional coherence and a common language with the historical architecture.
The bespoke wooden structures, made to fit the constraints and proportions of the site, embody a way of building that blends craftsmanship and innovation. Not a simple material, but a cultural device: flexible, reversible and able to accommodate technology without giving up its naturalness.
The new use of the Renaissance orchard
The intervention gives the palace garden back its function as a space for relationships. The wooden walkway, framed by transparent glass, redefines the paths of the orchard with a discreet but recognizable gesture, allowing visitors to cross the complex even in the winter months or during the rains, without compromising the visual experience of the place.
The new loggia is not just a connection, but a way of inhabiting public space. The shadows cast by the portals on the ground, the visual rhythm of the columns, the continuity between inside and outside create a mutable environment that changes with the light of day. It is a breathing architecture, in constant dialogue with the garden and with time.
The project, despite being inserted in a constrained context, stands out for its constructive and poetic lightness. It does not replicate history, but evokes it, giving the visitor the perception of a place that continues to live, capable of welcoming new uses without losing its identity.
Mornico Legnami’s approach: technique, culture and attention to detail
What made the realization of such a complex and delicate intervention possible was the work of Mornico Legnami, a company specialized in the design and installation of custom-made wooden structures.
The challenge was to translate the architectural needs into precise construction solutions, guaranteeing the highest aesthetic and functional quality.
Each phase, from prefabrication to turnkey delivery, was handled with artisanal attention and engineering expertise.
The result is a work that combines construction tradition and technological innovation, demonstrating how wood can be the protagonist of contemporary architecture even in the most protected historical contexts.
For Mornico Legnami, working at Palazzo dei Diamanti meant contributing to a symbolic place of Italian culture, demonstrating that sustainability is not just a question of materials, but of design responsibility.
In this loggia, every joint and every plank tell of the possibility of a dialogue between technique and memory, between human gesture and respect for the built landscape.
