Maria Cristina Didero: You define yourself an architect and museographer. Tell me about your work.

Luca Cipelletti: Over the course of my career, alongside architecture, I have worked on many other design experiences born from interests, curiosities and encounters. When I approach a new project, whether it be an exhibition, architecture or research, I try to adopt a pragmatic attitude. In whatever field, design implies an interdisciplinary exercise of knowledge: in short, it is a method, which has become my way of working. Over the past few years, I have become particularly interested in the possible relationships which form between art and architecture: through my studio we carry out research on this kind of design relationship which is principally unexplored, still experimental. The opportunities which come from exchange are enormous: the project which I followed with the artists Anne and Patrick Poirier for the Garden of Hypnos comes to mind, or the various projects realised with David Tremlett. Art opens onto delicate and very sincere scenic situations, multiple resources which architecture is free to follow and which contribute to the cultural quality of the design process. Direct experience with the art world also allows for more awareness in the design of dedicated spaces, a theme on which I have had many opportunities to work over the last few years.

Maria Cristina Didero: How did your relationship with the Museum of Science and Technology come about and what were your sources of inspiration for this project?

Luca Cipelletti: It all started in 2000, through research on museum standards and security monitoring in museums in the Lombardy region, which was then brought together in various publications. As part of this research, the Museum of Science and Technology was identified as a case study in order to highlight critical issues and potential, and to bring the location in line with museum standards. A collaboration was established in order to find possible solutions; at the same time, the Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Landscape became involved, and with them I began collaborating on projects for all of the works at the museum: in 2006 the educational workshops, in 2011 the ‘Scala dei Chiostri’ – the staircase inside the monumental building, followed by the re-qualification of the Austrian stables which we are opening today, and more recently a wide-ranging master plan project rendering the museum even more accessible and welcoming. Inspiration was born in harmony with the vision of the museum, an awareness of the historical context but above all the idea that architecture could contribute to an improved vision of the whole and to the modernisation of the museum. None of the projects which I have created, and which we are studying together, have ever been single interventions for improvements, rather they have been conceived as a whole.

Maria Cristina Didero: What is the founding principle for your renovation of the stables and the external area? And what will be their intended use?

Luca Cipelletti: The most interesting aspect of this project is that nothing has been added to the architecture of the stables, we have instead simply worked by subtraction: the entire project could be schematically represented by a cutting volume, positioned on the original axes of the cloister, with which it establishes a relationship which is both functional and visual. By removing portions of the original masonry, we obtained a long perspective walkway of approximately 80 m in length, which in turn revealed other dimensions and possibilities. The spaces within the stables, each originally used in an independent manner from the others, have been connected and brought into relation with each other, thus modifying the perception of the space and its possible use. Through this operation, the museum now opens onto via Olona and to the city, enhancing access to and from the various public transport stops, with a view to improving the organisation of the flow of museum visitors, who – once re-qualification works on the external areas have been completed – will use this new urban axis as an entrance to the museum.

Maria Cristina Didero: What about the materials? You mentioned the use of Alucobond.

Luca Cipelletti: Alucobond is a facade material commonly used in contemporary architecture for its technical properties and performance. Generally, the materials used were chosen for their durability and value for money: an important aspect of this project was the ability to responsibly control costs.

Maria Cristina Didero: As an architect and museographer, how would you define this type of operation?

Luca Cipelletti: The project is aimed at the optimisation of the functionality of the space through a work of stratification, exploiting what already existed and integrating it with contemporary architecture. The choice of colours for the project differentiates, and brings together, the original part of the structure (the colour of the bricks), with the current intervention (in shades of grey). From a museographic point of view, the most original aspect was the identification of a main pathway which not only defines an ordered distribution through the museum, but also favours a progressive discovery of the exhibition areas. In the large central area, where the windows on the facade have been panelled in bamboo – interrupted by thin glazed cuts aligned with the structure's roof purlins and the joints in the flooring – an interesting play of natural light is created, a solar clock which however does not interfere with the eventual expository use of the space. Particular attention has been paid to the design of the lighting, studied in collaboration with the Architect Alberto Pasetti and adapted to specific requirements in order to make the most of the structural peculiarities of the spaces and the perspective connecting axes of the exhibition halls. The illuminating structures, a suspended square-section tubular system of LED lighting elements, create a geometric relationship with the roofing, the doors, the facades and the lines in the floor.