Interest points may have high complexity levels since they can be meeting point of different scales and because of the presence of different services and externalities

The Radius of Influence is used to identify a special kind of point, called focal point. Focal points are those points of interests that have a long radius of influence and have as predominant scale the urban one. These points, if connected in a network and designed with a morphological quality, compose an orientating structure, which enables to improve the quality of the city and highlights its specific character. Several traditions set principles to built a dominant urban structure. In this thesis the Baroque principles were chosen because Baroque was very incisive in Turin’s expansion and it has left a strong cast for its further development. Perception was a fundamental aspect in the design of a Baroque city. The deep integration between infrastructure and architecture was another lesson learnt from the baroque city planning as well as the use of a specific set of tools. Introducing baroque planning in contemporary Turin it is necessary to notice that there is a huge difference between the distance and the speed people experiment living the contemporary city compared to the past. To use effectually Baroque principles it is necessary to move to a different scale, to different space dimensions, to a different speed of perception and last but not least there is a different social structure with its new set of values. An important aspect of reintroducing Baroque planning in modern Turin is to work on developing a close relation between architecture and infrastructure, where infrastructural projects are often not integrated with architecture.

To apply the theoretical study a focal point project exercise was carried out in Piazza Baldissera area. Piazza Baldissera is an important infrastructural node along the Turin high development potential Central Spine. This project exercise dealt with an intermodal station and an underground commercial space in the middle of the node. The identification of several scales emphasized the importance to recoup a multiple level architecture.

1.3 Focal Points

1.4 Complex city

1.5 Scales

The Research Question

Chapter 2_Long R.I. network

2.1 Radius of Influence

2.1.1 Origins and definitions

2.1.2 R.I. and poly-centricity in Turin

2.2 Points of interest

2.2.1 Points of interest in Turin

2.2.2 Innovative methods

2.3 Focal Points individuation

Chapter 3_Learning from the baroque

3.1 Ordering structure

3.2 Baroque city planning tools

3.3 Introducing baroque planning in contemporary Turin

3.4 Architecture and infrastructure

Chapter 4_The node design

4.1 The area choice: Piazza Baldissera

4.2 Piazza Baldissera history

4.3 Piazza Baldissera infrastructure issues

4.4 Masterplan

Chapter 5_Architecture design

5.1 Hybrid building

5.2 The facade

5.3 Ground and underground floors

5.4 Tower floors

5.5 Materials

Conclusions

Answering Research Question and Subquestions

Conclusive considerations

Image References and Bibliography

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Radius of Influence

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Design

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Laboratorio di Alta Qualità - Proinee dirtimento di Progettazione Architettonica

Dne del sottosuolo : il tunnel di via Stradella a Torino, lo Sampieri, Polytechnic of Turin

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Patterns, Focal Points and Scales, and Design

httD://www.museotorino.it/, last retrieved 18/09/2015