Abandonment places. The resilience of small towns in Irpinia

The abandonment in Italy is connected to the concept of “internal areas” that has acquired an important value, becoming the centre of the homonymous National Strategy and the subject of the Italian Pavilion. The research adds to previous studies, draft projects and focuses on Campania, in the area of Irpinia. The inland areas of the region host the small towns that share the same problems of the others Italian small towns: poor connections, lacking of services, low population density, social marginality. Furthermore, the earthquakes and the following reconstruction caused enormous damage to the artistic and cultural heritage and completely distorted the landscape. The project wants to give an overview of the landscape in order to empower the actions on the heritage. It also focuses on the recovery of a small city’s district called Trappeto, in which we can found the essence of Irpinia’s culture, with conservative and innovative interventions.