In October 2024, Lecce hosted the thirteenth edition of “Architects Meet”, an event conceived by AIAC (Italian Association of Architecture and Criticism), in collaboration with the Municipality of Lecce, the Polo Biblio-Museale and the Order of Architects PPC of Lecce. The theme chosen for this edition, “HyperRegionalism”, materiality and immateriality of Architecture”, explored a contemporary trend that contrasts global homogeneity with a rooted and recognizable architecture, capable of combining technological innovation and local tradition.

 

The concept of “HyperRegionalism” is based on a new balance between traditional and advanced technologies, with a particular focus on sustainability and energy efficiency. As underlined by the architectural critic and historian Luigi Prestinenza Puglisi, president of AIAC, the theme represents a response to standardization: “We recover significant fragments of pre-existing structures to create a dialogue between old materialities and new immaterial flows.”

The days of the event saw the involvement of architects, critics and designers from all over Italy and abroad, who shared projects emblematic of this vision.

 

Lecce, chosen for its unique architectural heritage, was the ideal setting for the event. The main venues, including the Teatro Paisiello, the Biblioteca Bernardini and the Church of Santa Maria di Ogni Bene, hosted conferences, exhibitions and meetings, creating an immersive experience for participants.

 

Manuel Aires Mateus, an internationally renowned Portuguese architect, received the International Award “Architects Meet in Lecce 2024”. During his lectio magistralis at the Teatro Paisiello, he illustrated the restoration project of Torre 67 in Alezio, an example of how the recovery of the past can coexist with sustainable contemporary design.

Along the dry stone walls of a narrow country lane in Southern Salento, you reach Torre67, Mateus’s first project in Puglia. The tower, with a square plan and structured on two levels, rises in the heart of the rural area of ​​Alezio (Lecce). Immersed in a landscape of crops, vineyards and wild flowers, two olive trees marked by Xylella welcome the entrance, like columns that evoke the memory of a now lost landscape. Built between the 12th and 14th centuries, initially intended for sighting purposes, the tower has undergone several transformations over time, maintaining traces of religious symbolism. Today, thanks to the rigorous restoration work of the Portuguese studio, the tower returns to its original form.

The restoration, completed in 2024, was based on the enhancement of the historical value of the site, with the aim of returning the tower to its original structure. The intervention involved the elimination of additional bodies and highlighted the tuff walls and the original openings. A radical approach, given that the tower is not constrained and that part of the demolished structures have not been rebuilt, but reused to create new components: the swimming pool, with a shape that replicates the tower, and the paths in the surrounding landscape.

The building was transformed into a residence for two clients from Milan who chose to live in Puglia. The living area is on the ground floor, while on the first floor there is a bedroom, a bathroom and a small office. All the rooms are characterised by traditional vaults and floors in cocciopesto, beaten tuff and travertine, while the walls are finished with lime and hemp. The choice to fully preserve the structure, the use of local and natural materials for the furnishings and the absence of air conditioning and heating systems are the most radical aspects of the project. The thermal inertia of the walls and natural ventilation partially compensate for the lack of cooling and heating systems.

This transformation represents an example of slow, almost monastic living, which distances itself from the frenetic pace of modern life and rediscovers values ​​of the past, not only aesthetic but also linked to direct contact with the territory.

The project is part of a particularly current context in Puglia, where many historic buildings are being restored and transformed into homes or accommodation facilities, also thanks to the support of regional funds. In this region, the design rooted in the territory, which preserves historical memory, contrasts with the growing demand for comfort and high energy performance, a theme that was the subject of discussion during “Architects Meet” in Lecce.

 

The event was enriched by two exhibitions curated down to the smallest details:

– “HyperRegionalism”, curated by Riat Archidecor, presented over 100 projects by Italian studios, enhancing the relationship between historical pre-existences and innovative architectural solutions. The installation
was composed of wooden tables, then handcrafted with an ecological decorative paint in different shades of color, supported by some very essential iron elements. The tables hosted about 140 notebooks, each of which illustrated a project created by an architectural studio. The theme of the exhibition is Hyperregionalism: to an architecture without a soul, the same in all places, today we try to contrast spaces that are rooted and recognizable and constructions in which the material plays a leading role.

– “Supermostra 24”, curated by Ilaria Olivieri and Luigi Prestinenza Puglisi, an observatory and a traveling exhibition explored the work of 33 emerging designers, with the aim of verifying how much interest is happening in the field of architecture in the different regional areas of the peninsula, inaugurating the “STELO” exhibition system, an innovative project of the Polo Biblio-Museale of Lecce.

 

With over 600 registered attendees, “Architects Meet 2024” ended with an extremely positive balance. “We have laid the foundations for a profound reflection on the future of Italian architecture,” said Prestinenza Puglisi. The event transformed Lecce into an international capital of architecture, consolidating its role as a point of reference for contemporary architecture and for the dialogue between tradition and innovation.

The theme of HyperRegionalism, which explores an architecture in harmony with the local context, focused on the specificities of Salento, such as the use of Lecce stone and carparo. These materials were valorized as examples of sustainability and architectural innovation.

With an international participation of over 300 professionals and scholars, the event strengthened the visibility of Lecce and Salento, positioning them as a cultural and tourist center for architecture.

The event confirmed Lecce as a laboratory of architectural innovation, combining historical memory and contemporaneity. These annual meetings, if continued, will further consolidate the identity of Salento as a model of sustainable development based on the valorization of its unique resources.