David Chipperfield wins the Pritzker Architecture Prize

By Aldo Mazzocco , CEO Generali Real Estate

We want to deeply congratulate David Alan Chipperfield for the amazing victory at the Pritzker Architecture Prize, the highest honor in the field. Chipperfield was hailed for "a commitment to an architecture of understated but transformative civic presence. We are extremely happy and proud to have worked with David Chipperfield Architects Milan at Generali Real Estate for the restoration of Procuratie Vecchie in San Marco square in Venice.

Procuratie Vecchie is a masterpiece of architecture and beauty, part of Italy’s heritage and of Generali’s history. Chipperfield, following a five-year restoration of the building, enabled to show the world this unique asset for the first time in its 500-year history. For me it was a personal pleasure to see David’s genius from his vision in the project, the selection of materials, the craftwork, to the final completion.

?As the Pritzker Architecture Prize says, Chipperfield is a “prolific architect who is radical in his restraint demonstrating his reverence for history and culture while honoring the preexisting built and natural environments." The project at Procuratie Vecchie has not been defined by a single concept or architectural gesture, but through a series of interventions that address the complexity of the work. These included the restoration of the first and second floors, the reorganisation of accessibility and usability of the building through the inclusion of new staircases and the renovation of the central pavilion on the third floor. The intervention promoted by Generali has also enhanced the third floor to include exhibition spaces open to the public and linked to The Human Safety Net foundation, workspaces and an auditorium.

Our focus at Generali Real Estate has always been to preserve and enhance the value of historical assets across Europe with the contribution of visionary architects like David Chipperfield.