MATERIA · FORMA is a visual and editorial project documenting the transformation of Spazio Moby, formerly the site of the Moretti furniture factory in Treviso, Italy. The publication — conceived as a photographic and written reflection — chronicles the full arc of an architectural revitalization: from abandonment to renewal, from raw structure to inhabited space.
Opening with a quote from Italo Calvino's Invisible Cities, the book sets its tone immediately: cities of the future already exist in the present, layered and folded within one another. This idea of temporal stratification runs through the entire work. In an era defined by speed, the project deliberately slows down, choosing to dwell on the complexity and nuance of a process that cannot be rushed. Quality, the authors argue, demands care, attention, and the willingness to change direction — a process that is rarely linear.
The photographic gaze at the heart of the publication is intentionally unhurried and non-standardized. Rather than imposing a predetermined visual language, the images adapt to the space and context, seeking to read each environment in its deepest essence. The lens captures fleeting, unrepeatable moments — scenes that exist only in a specific "here and now" during the construction site's successive phases.
The building itself becomes the protagonist: first an abandoned shell, motionless and forgotten, yet rich with traces and memories of its industrial past. As demolition and transformation begin, the structure reveals its latent tension — a potential energy pointing toward what it might yet become. This tension becomes the generative force behind the design process, giving rise to new forms, new spatial relationships, and ultimately a renewed dialogue with the surrounding city.
Text by Silvia Possamai accompanies the visual narrative, weaving together architectural reflection and poetic observation. Together, image and word construct a layered account of time, material, and place — a record of how a forgotten building reclaims its identity and is reintegrated into the urban fabric of Treviso.
MATERIA · FORMA is both a document and a meditation: on the nature of transformation, on the patience that meaningful architecture requires, and on the quiet power of spaces that have been given a second life.
ISBN
9791224313472Title
MATERIA FORMAAuthor
Arch. Giuseppe Cangialosi and Arch. Silvia PossamaiPublication year
2025Binding
HardcoverLanguage
Italiano
