Book Introduction: Vittorio Gregotti. Urban Design Between China and Italy. The Pujiang and Bicocca Cases

Vittorio Gregotti: Urban Design Between China and Italy. The Bicocca and Pujiang Cases.**

At the beginning of the 21st century, China embarked on the most massive urbanization process in modern history, aiming to build hundreds of new towns to reconfigure its territorial frameworks within a global perspective. In this context, Shanghai's "One City, Nine Towns" project emerges as an emblematic case of a "cosmopolitan" strategy that entrusted the construction of new urban identities to foreign architectural languages.

The exhibition focuses on Vittorio Gregotti's work in this scenario, analysing two of his major urban projects in parallel: the "Italian Town" of Pujiang in Shanghai and the Bicocca district in Milan. Conceived as the most successful of the nine new towns, Pujiang represents the attempt to export an "Italian urban design" idea to China. However, its realisation, particularly concerning public spaces and the central axis, remained partial. The comparison with the Bicocca complex—a mature example of urban transformation in Italy—highlights the consistency of Gregotti's design method across different geographical and cultural contexts.

Through a comparative approach, the exhibition aims to investigate the theoretical models, urban morphologies, and compositional solutions adopted by the Italian master. It critically reflects on the ever-relevant themes of cultural exchange, the balance between modernisation and tradition, and the dialogue—often fraught with ambiguity and contradictions—between local and global values in contemporary architecture and urban planning.