Space and Difference. An Inheritance in Metamorphosis

The contribution explores how Italian architectural heritage, when confronted with the Chinese context, reveals its transformative nature. Rather than a static repertoire, tradition emerges as an open structure, capable of metamorphosis through cultural distance and dialogue. The courtyard, the sequence, and the threshold become shared archetypes, reinterpreted across different geographies yet generating profound continuities. Within this crossing, design assumes a critical role: it activates heritage, tests its limits, and turns it into living matter. Archetype and difference thus intersect, opening the possibility for a conscious architectural practice that engages the present without losing its roots.