The Restoration course intend to deepen, on the basis of disciplinary knowledge acquired in the three-year course, some themes of the contemporary debate in constant relationship between theories and practice, so as to allow students to get critical competence in the field of protection and conservation of architectural heritage.

The Restoration course aims to deepen, starting from the knowledge already acquired in the three-year course, some issues related to the Restoration discipline. It will concern the themes and the methodology of the restoration project for the conservation , the restoration laws and charters, the materials and their deterioration, diagnostics, intervention techniques for the restoration of artifacts , the relation between old/new architecture in reuse interventions, focusing on the problem of preservation and enhancement of cultural heritage, with particular reference to architectural and urban heritage and to landscape.
Students attending the course will acquire the ability to examine and critically evaluate restoration interventions taking into account issues such as compatibility, minimal intervention, reversibility, distinctness, sustainability, which they will constantly have to face in the development of interventions on the existing heritage.

The student must have historical knowledge in order to be able to critically read both material and immaterial signs of the buildings. It must also have acquired, during the three-year degree course in Architecture, knowledge about the fundamentals of restoration theories and history, design and representation, technology and history of architecture.

The Restoration course intends to examine thoroughly some topics concerning Restoration discipline, from knowledges acquired in the first three years courses onwards.
The course will be organized with ex-cathedra lessons focusing on the examination of aspects of both theoretical, and practical/application: restoration project methodology, materials and their degradation, diagnostic, restoration intervention techniques, relation between old and new in reuse interventions. In particular, the course aims to make students aware about problems concerning safeguard and enhance of architectural heritage: from industrial heritage to “author’s architecture”.
During the course some visits will be conducted in architectural sites, recently restored or reused, in order to let the students examine directly the interventions and critically evaluate them.
The students will be asked to do a practical exercise focusing on conservation problems trying to elaborate a restoration project of an architecture.

The course will be organized with:
1. ex-cathedra lessons focusing on the examination of aspects of both theoretical, and practical/application;
2. some visits which will be conducted in architectural sites, recently restored or reused, in order to let the students examine directly the interventions and critically evaluate them;
3. practical assignement.

Bibliography and thematic teaching material in digital form and relevant documents to the organization of group activities will be made available to students on the portal of teaching. Specific bibliographic references will be provided from time to time, after lessons and during the practical activity, in relation to the specific needs of the topics dealt with.

• J. ALLEN, Points of Balance, in S. MACDONALD, K. NORMANDIN, B. KINDRED (eds.), Conservation of Modern Architecture, Donhead, Shafterbury 2007, pp. 13-46;
• G. G. AMOROSO, V. FASSINA, Stone Decay and Conservation, Elsevier, The Netherlands 1983
• S. CACCIA, Elogio della cura. Il progetto di restauro: orientamenti critici ed esperienze, Edizioni ETS, Pisa 2012;
• A. CAZZANI, On the edge of modern heritage conservation, in A. CAZZANI (eds.), Conserving Architecture. Planned Conservetion of XX Century Architectural Heritage, Electa, Milano 2009, pp. 38-47;
• M. DALLA COSTA, Il progetto di restauro per la conservazione del costruito, Celid, Torino 2001;
• S. MARIS CASAL, The 20th century architectural heritage, a 21st century conservation challenge: Buenos Aires experiences, in A. CAZZANI (eds.), Conserving Architecture. Planned Conservation of XX Century Architectural Heritage, Electa, Milano 2009, pp. 48-58;
• M. MARKGRAF, Maintenance system for the Bauhaus buildings in Dessau and Weimar: conceptual development of a methodology, in A. CAZZANI (eds.), Conserving Architecture. Planned Conservetion of XX Century Architectural Heritage, Electa, Milano 2009, pp. 258-269;
• T. H. M. PRUDON, Preservation of Modern Modern Architecture, John Wiley & Sons, Hoboken 2008;
• M. VECCO, A definition of cultural heritage: from the tangible to the intangible, in “Journal of Cultural Heritage”, n. 11, 2010, pp. 321-324;
• M. VECCO, L’evoluzione del concetto di patrimonio culturale, Franco Angeli, Milano 2007.

In order to pass the exam the students will be asked to carry out a practical exercise concerning the development of the restoration project of an architecture proposed by the teacher.
The exam includes an interview during which questions will be formulated on the topics covered during the course and it will be assessed the outcomes of the exercise assigned.