Strip Park between Caltagirone & San Michele di Ganzaria

The project forms part of a general hypothesis that proposes the idea of reusing the former railway track built in the 1920s and 1930s to link Caltagirone to Piazza Armerina. The railway, which established its own rules and principles, stood out against the original landscape like a ravine, a wound. Even elements such as the stations, the stops, the signalmen's cottages and the frameworks were built according to the same criteria, and differed from anything else in Sicily at the time. The track ran for 35 km between Caltagirone and Piazza Armerina through different kinds of agricultural and natural landscapes. This project addresses landscape, more specifically the unveiling of old farmland areas in an inner sicilian region, both rich in natural and historical features, stimulating a new point of view. Our intention is to define a 'light infrastructure' that evolves not from spectacular acts, but from the regeneration of works that, although now disused, have acquired different forms and raisons d'être and established their own identity, despite violent attacks from territorial transformations that have taken place over the past 30 years.

Transformation is suggested by making small but significant changes. By altering usage and carrying out different modifications (including maintenance, retrieval and new constructions) we hope to foster all available resources to recreate a place where every building or transformation discovers a purpose in relationship to what it may activate.

This naturalistic route must be regarded as a 'light infrastructure' that strengthens the strip park developed from the old railway, lined with a row of cypresses, and enhanced by compact, variegated surfaces of shrubs planted along the slopes. The project develops the theme of landscape by continually entwining two plans: the material construction of the park (the rows of trees, gardens, colours, smells, etc) and the creation of visions,etc.