Redeveloping La Certosa Island: The Caligo Project by Yuka Imada, Veronika Kapustina, and Kotryna Bajorinaitė for the Wood Architecture course

During our Wood Architecture course at Yacademy in Spring 2024, we had a unique opportunity to submit a proposal for the redevelopment of the island of La Certosa. La Certosa is an island set in an unspoilt part of the Venetian lagoon. It is close enough to St Mark’s Square to be considered part of the city centre. Still, it offers a unique opportunity to experience Venice as it was 1,000 years ago, secluded and unspoilt.

Caligo is Latin for “fog” and, in the Venetian dialect, translates to “shrouded in a light mist”. It was chosen as a name for the project to guide the work and embody its fundamental principles - lightness, transience, and poeticism.

Pathways: Active vs Passive

Existing structures and topology lend Certosa to a seamless division into two zones: a more built-up, urban, or “active” side to the southwest of the island and a more nature-filled, “passive” side to the northeast. The two sides are connected by a system of paths and transition from a linear system in the southwest to more organic formations in the northeast.

Placement & Programming

The Historical Landmark Pavilion, the first structure in the Caligo project, pays tribute to the remains of the Sant’ Andrea monastery on the island. The structure partially shrouds the ruins and functions as an exhibition space and sculpture garden. It provides some shelter but is primarily a space that is open to the outdoor environment.

Moving towards the border from the western to the eastern part of the island, the visitor will arrive at the Cultural Center, a gate-like complex that invites them to transition from the urban to the natural environment. The complex includes a café, an indoor exhibition space, and an outdoor rest and recreation area.

The passive or eastern side of the island, where the majority of the island’s trees are located, houses the Lodges. This location was chosen as it is closest to a shore of the island that does not have any existing structures and, therefore, provides uninterrupted views of the lagoon. The densely wooded area also offers privacy and seclusion.

Lastly, the Recreation Pavilion is an area for visitors and lodge guests to enjoy. The lagoon is the focus here, and the structures evoke a sense of sailing on the water. The pavilion is placed around a small, manmade bay.

Historical Landmark Pavilion

 

The project preserves the monastery's perimeter, accentuating it with wooden archways, platforms, and linen drapery reminiscent of sails.

The space lends itself to an exhibition area for art pieces and installations that would not be sensitive to being in a semi-outdoor environment.

Cultural Center

The volume acts as a gate between the urban and natural environments, a transition from the western to the eastern side of Certosa. This concept led to the creation of the initial volume, an archway, which was subsequently deconstructed into four distinct shapes.

A path leads the visitor from the urban side of the island through the opening between the enclosed volumes, the “gate”, into the courtyard and out towards the park.

The Lodges

 

 

The lodge began as a contemplation of the interplay between closed and open spaces and how that tension can be replicated in a structure. The structure is elevated above the swampy terrain by wooden stilts that embed into rock pillar foundations. Solid wood closes the structure off from the active side, and glass opens it up to the natural environment.

A metal mesh bridge leads the guest from a private path on a different circuit from the public paths on the passive side of the island towards a solid wooden wall that does not have a discernible entrance. Once through, however, the remainder of the volume is light, translucent, and open to the natural environment it is nestled in.

Recreation Pavilion

 

At the island's northeast end, the Recreation Pavilion is a hidden retreat, a port of sorts, that sits at the end of a public beach. Platforms, bridges, and draped, enclosed boxes create a seating system and a series of micro-shelters within the pavilion.

The project uses its established modular language to bring different viewing aspects to the visitor by experimenting with elevation. Soft, linen-draped, and hard, wood-enclosed structures take on different functionality, from resting and viewing platforms to changing facilities, showers, and restrooms.