Place
| Isola di San Giacomo in Paludo
The island of San
Giacomo in Paludo is at the centre of the lagoon north of Venice along the
Scomenzera Canal San Giacomo, the major artery that connects the historic
centre of Venice and Murano and Burano, Torcello and Mazzorbo.
The island has an area
of 12,000 square meters, it originally housed a hospital, later turned into a
monastery (XI century) that was abandoned in the eighteenth century and finally
demolished. Since 1810 the island was used as a powder warehouse until 1961,
when it was abandoned in 1993, the Magistrato alle Acque has taken steps to
initiate the
restoration of some parts of the island, which nevertheless has
undergone, in recent decades a rapid and profound degradation; the degradation,
in addition to military buildings, has also affected the wall. Now the island
is under license from the State of the environmental association VAS (Verdi
Ambiente e Societą).
San Giacomo in Paludo
has a quadrangular form emphasized from the brick wall that runs along the
perimeter and gives a clear and regular figure.
The island is invested
by the constant wave action caused by wind from North-East
(the Bora) of up to 80 km / h. These phenomena typical of the Venetian lagoon
created such damage that it requires surgery to strengthen and rebuild the
embankment wall collapsed on the east side of enlarging the surface and
preserving the archaeological remains of a medieval secure degradation.
The buildings are
nineteenth-century construction, with the exception of the cavana, artefact of the seventeenth
century. All architectural structures are built in brick with wood trusses.
The three largest
buildings, built by the Austrians and the Italians also used as military
depots, are arranged with respect to the longitudinal dimension of the island,
two horizontally and one vertically. The two horizontal position buildings were
used as deposits of gunpowder, and had thick walls 1.50 meters to defend the
attacks from fire and explosives.
The third building
military depot used for storing equipment had a floor was raised above the
ground to prevent that the moisture could attack the army ammunition depots.
In addition to the
buildings are three to five meters high embankments,
created to protect the deposits of ammunition from the cannon attacks and to
prevent the explosion of a powder magazine would inevitably involve the other.
San Giacomo in Paludo
it's the only one of the deserted islands of the Venetian Lagoon that is easily
accessible using existing transmission lines, and its geographical location in
the barycentric system of the northern lagoon makes it a site of primary
importance in the management of any initiative for environment, recreational,
museum and a place of hospitality.
San Giacomo in Paludo
may become the new port of the north lagoon, strategic location and the tourist
point of departure for excursions.
The presence of
archaeological sites, with wide green spaces, and the fact that the island is
located along the migratory routes of some birds can equip it also features
bird watching, nature observatory and laboratory teaching.
Buildings on the island have already been
used, including the Venice Biennale, as exhibition halls and are suitable for
the type and volume of use to a social and collective. This will allow us to
reactivate the island, giving new meaning to become a new actor on the stage
lagoon.
|