Esperienze costruttive nel sud del mondo tra reale e digitale

Building Experiences in the Global South Between Real and Digital The production of architecture has long been divided into two distinct paths: on the one hand, traditional design and construction processes, and on the other, more articulated developments, the realization complexity of which is closely connected to computational processing techniques. The use of digitization has hinged on parametric design tools, and thus on the use of software able to accompany the architectural definition and production of construction components. The physical results are the materialization of three-dimensional digital modeling. The architecture that is expressed in the choice of materials and construction characteristics derived from ancestral local traditions appears to be of the opposite origins. This is most evident in observing the realizations, even contemporary ones, implemented in emerging countries, in which designers attempt to combine material properties, construction skills and spatial quality. This mediation does not necessarily impose a simplification of form, but on the contrary can determine an expressive complexity, resulting in a process of geometric synthesis, inextricably linked to the material component of architecture. Starting from the two design and construction processes – digital and traditional – the contribution reflects on the urban and rural landscape of the African continent and how to combine contemporary design with local construction techniques in a low-technology context.