Dalla densificazione all’intensificazione come parametro per la città sostenibile

The present contribution proposes a different approach to the "density" issue through the reformulation of this still important measure and interpretative tool to the contemporary architectural design. Starting from the limits that emerged from the past definitions and uses of the notion, the work explores some of the main densification strategies in place in the French context, where the density/intensity matter has become a crucial issue for the urban planning, becoming a major focus of the political, intellectual and academic debate. The work further suggests a semantic and conceptual shift towards the notion of “intensity” with the aim to meet the increasingly necessity to move from a static and quantitative conception of the density concept to a dynamic and qualitative conception, trying to identify the related spatial forms and configurations. The present contribution therefore proposes a synthesis of a doctoral thesis work deployed within the Housing Lab of DiAP Sapienza, conducted at the scale of a specific urban piece of the Parisian metropolitan mosaic through the above reading key of intensity.