Venturoni Studio’s approach to context and heritage

In this episode of Behind, DesignWanted’s video series exploring contemporary design practices, takes us inside Venturoni Studio. Founded by architect Francesca Venturoni, the multidisciplinary practice develops architecture and design projects through a balance of historical awareness, technical expertise, and contextual sensitivity. Through her reflections, a clear vision emerges: architecture is a collaborative process shaped by dialogue, constraints, and shared knowledge.

Venturoni’s approach has been shaped by experiences across different scales and methods of working. One of the most formative was Arcosanti, the experimental city conceived by Paolo Soleri in the Arizona desert. There, architecture was inseparable from making. Construction, furniture production, material experimentation, and craft existed within the same ecosystem, showing how design ideas take form through direct engagement with materials and processes.

Working in such an environment revealed the connection between large-scale architectural thinking and hands-on production. The experience highlighted how architecture develops through drawings, materials, making, and construction. This relationship between design and craftsmanship continues to inform the studio’s work today.

Later experiences in London added another layer to this perspective. At Foster + Partners, attention to detail became closely linked to responsibility and control throughout a project. At Zaha Hadid Architects, Venturoni witnessed the commitment required to reach leadership positions within the profession.

Today, Venturoni Studio is a female-driven practice, the natural result of a working culture that attracts people with a shared mindset. The team describes itself as a group of “architecture nerds,” reflecting a genuine enthusiasm for research, problem-solving, and rigorous investigation. Curiosity, creativity, and method are considered equally important within the design process.

This emphasis on collaboration is central to the studio’s philosophy. Venturoni questions the tendency to frame architects primarily as storytellers. While narrative can support communication, architecture is the result of collective effort, requiring the contribution of multiple disciplines and areas of expertise.

This perspective is particularly relevant in Italy, where every intervention engages with a dense network of historical, cultural, and environmental conditions. The country’s landscape is shaped by layers accumulated over centuries, making each project part of a broader conversation. Design therefore involves understanding how new elements can coexist with existing ones.

A current restoration project on Lake Trasimeno exemplifies this approach. Located on a steep site containing medieval remains, the project involves the transformation of a building that has evolved through different historical periods. The site also raises broader questions about the future of small Italian villages at a time when many are experiencing depopulation and demographic decline.

For Venturoni Studio, the goal is to introduce contemporary interventions that respect existing conditions while allowing places to remain active and relevant. The project requires continuous dialogue with clients, consultants, engineers, landscape designers, restoration specialists, and heritage authorities. Each stakeholder contributes a different perspective, making collaboration an essential part of the process.

The studio treats historical layers, regulatory requirements, and site conditions as tools that help shape meaningful responses. Through this process, architecture emerges as a negotiation between permanence and change, connecting memory with contemporary needs.

Across projects of different scales, this attitude remains consistent. Venturoni Studio’s work is guided by the belief that architecture should engage intelligently with its surroundings, responding to complexity with care and precision. The aim is to find a balance between transformation and continuity.

Venturoni offers a perspective centred on collective intelligence. Architecture, as she describes it, brings together diverse skills, respects context, and creates meaningful connections between past and present through clarity and restraint.

The original BEHIND series comes to life thanks to the invaluable support of our trusted partners:

• Desiree, part of Gruppo Euromobil
• DGRS Studio Legale