Winner in the category Pizzeria with the project Berberè, Manifattura Tabacchi, Florence – Italy
Winner in the category Branding with the project Berberè, Porta Palazzo, Turin – Italy
1. Can you tell us more about your Design Firm?
Avamposti Architettura comes from the collaboration between the Italian architect Giambattista Ghersi and the Spanish-Dutch architect Julian Mesa Slooten; based in Milan and Bologna with extensive expertise both in residential and commercial projects.
Over the years AVAMPOSTI had the chance to develop successful food & beverage formats, such as Berberè and Miscusi, helping actualize restaurant models that could convey social eating and sustainability values without ever sacrificing efficiency and quality of service.
In addition to its specialization and history in the development of retail formats, Avamposti exercises all possible declinations of architectural design, from residential to urban intervention, with an always recognizable style and an integrated operating model that does not end with the delivery of the drawing boards.
2. What does “design” mean to you?
The way of imagining architectural design is for Avamposti Architettura a constant commitment to valorizing historical stratification beyond purely aesthetic choices. Making architecturally evident the previous ways of using spaces, their relationship with the outside and the surrounding environments gives the buildings something that goes beyond the contribution of taste. The renovation interventions, the rooms’ layout, the finishes and even the furnishings create a bond between the spaces and those who have used them in the past and will use them in the future. This is the deepest meaning we attribute to any of our design effort.
3. Can you describe your design style and its main characteristics?
The style of Avamposti seeks to interpret first of all the identity of the brand for which the project is designed. Small recognizable elements become the replicable yet unique style of each new project. The recovery of the existing determines a style that often mixes opposite elements, rough and refined, contemporary and classic, minimal and rich. The search for the contrast between valorization of the existing and architectural authorship is what characterizes the signature of Avamposti Architettura and consequently of the brands that decide to rely on our imagination
4. As the winner of the FoodInSpace Design Awards 2024, what does receiving this award mean to you, your company and your team?
It is a great honor to receive this award, especially receiving it for two projects that really define our vision, Berberè Manifattura Tabacchi in Firenze and Berberè Porta Palazzo in Torino.
The confrontation with international architecture firms from all over the world was for us a fun opportunity to reflect on the specificities of our style, intrigued by the solutions that other main players in retail design have put into practice in very different real estates contexts. The comparison has certainly led us to feel part of an extremely lively creative universe and to better understand what our specific identity consists of.
5. What was the biggest challenge for your winning project/projects?
Our studio often works in the redefinition of spaces and retail concepts within historic buildings, reinventing spaces and forms of use in the constant confrontation with substantial legislative and structural limitations. While it is true that in our work the limits and practical needs can become opportunities for creative expression and enhancement of the existing, it can often be challenging to square technical needs, opening times and the need to respect and bring out the identity of the brand for which we work.
6. In an increasingly global world, how do you balance local identity with international trends in your design work?
Our curiosity as architects has always moved on a global level. It is clear that Italian architectural culture has its own specificities and we would be lying if we did not confess that we feel particularly close to names like Nervi, Scarpa, Ponti. Retail clients deal with Avamposti with extremely complex needs, both from a technical and functional point of view. Our solutions always try to be cutting-edge and follow contemporary trends, in terms of finishes, materials and technology involved. However, the identity of Avamposti is intrinsically linked to the effort of preserving the existing, which deals with historic buildings features and elements of historicity to be restored and enhanced. Moreover our suppliers and the craftsmen we work with are often linked to the area of the property we are working on, for sustainability reasons and because it is important to talk to those who know the area well. This is how we resolve and balance an international sensitivity with the local identity of our projects.
7. Are there any other topics you would like to talk about that were not addressed in these questions?
In receiving this award we would like to thank all those who have worked alongside us over the years, to materialize what we imagined as architects. Our projects grow together with the entrepreneurs who trust us and with the retail formats that, meeting with success and public recognition, express ever new needs, put us in front of increasingly interesting challenges and over time become part of the daily life of entire communities.
Thank you for the interview!
Find out more about Avamposti Architettura and its projects!
