The Mandarinarte Project entails two phases: requalifying the confiscated Mafia building to create a cultural centre and to produce and sell the fruits grown from cultivating tangerines (mandarino tardivo) and creating a network of social integration and recreational activities dedicated to the Ciaculli-Croceverde Giardina local community.

The architectural project includes the conclusion and requalification of the building and the agricultural area in the Valdaura-Ciaculli district. The unauthorised property was seized in the 1990s and is basically a frame structure made of precast concrete structured on three levels.

The project intends to close both level -1 and 0 and to create a ventilated façade composed by alveolar polycarbonate panels providing high thermal performance. The semitransparent “skin” allows a new lighting system that radically transforms the volume of the product, which goes from being a symbol of illegality to a guiding light towards a new sense of legality.

Level 2 is intentionally left “unfinished” and defines the volume of the building, witness of the district’s history, scene of events and figures indissolubly connected to the Mafia phenomenon.

Palermo, 2013

Details

Requalifying the confiscated Mafia building
Surface 190 m

Team Project

Massimiliano Masellis
Salvatore Barone
Andrea Liguori