Baglio Donna Franca, immersed in silence amidst the expanses of vineyards in western Sicily, once belonged to the Florio family as a support point for the procurement of grapes from the Birgi plateau, which constituted the unique base for the preparation of ‘Marsala’ wine. Today, in the same place, the current owners, producers of top-quality organic wines, hand down the culture of ‘Perpetual’ wine and the wine production method typical of this area.
The Wine Cellar project inside the baglio stems precisely from the need to make better known not only the products, but also the cultural values of the area through the enhancement of the environment and landscape.
The new volume, realised by Studio 4e – Costanzo e Piazza Architetti in collaboration with architect Luigi Castellana and constituting a functional appurtenance for the company’s business, is characterised by two iconic signs that constitute the concept of the project: the shape of the roof, obtained from the curvilinear profile of the wine bottle, and the division of the internal space of the refrigerated display rooms, which recalls the broken line of the wooden vine shoot.
The study of the project took into account the architectural pre-existence of the baglio as the essence of the landscape, creating a volume with a contemporary and original language that integrates harmoniously with the historical pre-existence.
Conceived as an attractive gallery of taste connecting the two existing volumes, the reception and the restaurant, the new hall is divided into several interconnected spaces: a large tasting area, which through a fully glazed wall provides access to the inner courtyard of the baglio, and six temperature- and humidity-controlled rooms for displaying wines.
The new building, made entirely of metal framed structure, takes into account both the landscape context and the preservation and enhancement of the existing baglio, so that it fits well and blends into the natural environment, through a careful choice of materials.
For more information visit www.studio4e.it.
CREDITS
Project: Baglio Donna Franca
Architects: Studio 4e + Arch. Luigi Castellana
Location: marsala, Sicily
Year: 2020
Photo: Michelle Aarlaht
