IISS “Fardella Ximenes”
Trapani (TP)
The intervention, located in the historic center of Trapani, concerns a monumental building complex that occupies the entire block delimited by via Vittorio Emanuele, via Mancina, via Roma and via Genovese. Two architectural complexes stand on it: the former Jesuit College overlooking Via Vittorio Emanuele and the building housing the former court with the main entrance on Via Roma.
Definitive and Executive Design
Service
, CSP and CSE,
Works Management
Location
Trapani
Client
Free Municipal Consortium of Trapani
Surface area
9,810 m2
Type
Restoration/Renovation
Status
Accomplished
The college, which was home to the Ximenes High School for a long time, remained disused due to its precarious safety and health conditions. The adjoining building, for years the seat of the Court, had been in a state of total abandonment since the 1980s. The construction of the College took place between 1596 and 1694, the structure is more than certain the work of Natale Masuccio. Fruit of its time, the College presents links in its formal language with the Tuscan-Roman architectural culture, in the mediation of Michelangelo's and Jesuit architects operating in Messina and Palermo in the 17th century. The originality and strength of the façade, created around 1659 based on designs by Francesco Pinna, more modest and functional than that of the church, repeats the well-known Ammanatesque schemes present in the Roman College of Ammanati and Valeriani in Rome in which the rich and slender motif of the portal and balcony, very likely the work of local workers.
The rectangular cloister features a Doric style portico and cross vaults. The paving of the courtyard has two very distinct and complete designs as a whole. Their diversity, as can be assumed from existing archival data, derives from the historical development of the whole. Initially, the church and the convent were two separate entities from a planimetric and architectural point of view, divided by a road that prevented the construction of the apse chapels of the church. When the order was dissolved in 1767, the College became the seat of the Bourbon schools and in 1834 it became the "Royal Liceo". The vertical load-bearing structures are made up, on the ground floor and in some parts of the first floor, of sack masonry, in which elements of limestone emerge, the size of which decreases as you proceed towards the upper part. The walls with a height of 13.20 meters are placed inside the structure to support the vaulted systems and stop at the floor slab on the first floor; the other wall facings continue in elevation up to the third deck.
The project is part of a broader hypothesis of "bringing up to standard" and functional redevelopment of the historic complex with the aim of rationalizing the internal spaces, creating escape routes and removing architectural barriers.
On the structures in question, following the execution of geognostic surveys, a general check of the actual state was carried out, revealing a degradation of the interstitial mortars due, probably, to the sensitivity of the material used, to the surrounding humidity and to the large covering. degraded part; these factors allowed infiltrations that significantly reduced the resistance of the facings. In fact, the presence of water in the walls and humidity in the rooms constitutes one of the fundamental causes of deterioration of the existing building. We therefore worked, respecting the historical heritage, with safety interventions such as to achieve the set objectives and guarantee maximum functionality of the building. The reclamation and consolidation of the stone masonry in question involved a first phase of removal of the plaster and degraded surface mortar and subsequent recoating and plastering; a second phase with the creation of holes placed at 45° with a distance between centers of 1 meter and arranged in a quincunx; a third phase of injection of premixed grout.
As regards the interventions in the vaults, structural reinforcement elements such as carbon fibers and metal rods were inserted both at the same level as the flat floors and in the vaulted systems, according to the results of the calculations carried out. Particular care was taken in placing the tie rods on the main façade, positioning the key heads flush so as not to compromise the layout of the façade. On the ground floor, all those activities that require greater accidental overloads and emergency exits directed towards safe areas such as warehouses and rooms intended for plant power plants have been created. Accessing from Corso Vittorio Emanuele, the following were created in sequence: two rooms intended for permanent exhibition; two special classrooms, the first for physics and natural sciences and the second for chemistry respectively; finally, a room is used as a bar, equipped with a special storage area with dedicated access in the entrance area.
It can also be accessed from Via Roma, where in addition to a new stairwell, a panoramic lift shaft has been created inside the atrium, so as to break down architectural barriers, which vertically connects the various levels; the functions obtained in the available rooms are: the library, the janitor's station, the historical archive and a second special natural science classroom with exit onto Via Mancina. On the first floor there are 14 classrooms, the toilets on the floor as well as the great hall intended for supplementary and extracurricular activities with direct exit to the outside. The teachers' lounge, a video-TV room and a reading room are also located on the floor. On the second floor there are n. 14 classrooms, a classroom for supplementary activities, toilets on the floor, a library/reading room, a room dedicated to professors, a room for institute representatives and a multimedia room equipped with dedicated storage. Finally, on the third floor, n. 4 classrooms, toilets, storage room as well as accommodation for the caretaker.
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