Antinori Winery, Florence

Architects: Archea Associati
Text: Vilmos Katona
Photos: Pietro Savorelli

This year Antinori Winery was awarded Mies van der Rohe Prize as besides the technological expertise it has raised the standards of experience offered by contemporary wineries to guests well above average. Bargino is situated in the district of Florence along the road leading from Siena to San Gimignano. This region was the home of Etruscan tribes about 3,000 years ago whose culture involved co-existence with their ancestors and the concept of death which shaped the blending of the underground world and that of living people to some extent which is reflected in their habits shaping the environment. Their symbols referring to birth and death was preserved for posterity by agriculture and especially viniculture. The link between the cult of the dead and wine-making is also shown in architecture. The three characteristic lines defining the hiding structure have essentially preserved the impressions of the former cult-related activities. The three levels of the complex follow the contours of the hillside embankment. The entrance is bordered by reddish ferro-concrete buttresses, which are the same colour as the soil. From there an asphalted road leads us on to the womb of the earth. The area in front of the lower level is where the routes of transporting bottled products from here and visitors arriving on the site meet. From here guests can enter the building via a grand spiral staircase to the semi-open foyer of the central level. The row of spaces creeping underground is illuminated by round piercings of the flooring. The functional configuration reflecting the ambition to achieve perfection is based on simple materials easy to use: it is defined by the untreated, natural rawness of the earth.

Architecture: Archea Associati
Architects: Laura Andreini, Marco Casamonti, Silvia Fabi, Giovanni Polazzi
Art expert: Marco Casamonti, Francesco Giordani
Structure: HYDEA