anno di pubblicazione 2026
pp. 238
ISBN cartaceo 9791255001041
ISBN pdf 9791255001058
The book brings together the theoretical foundations and teaching experiences of two complementary courses, Morphologies. The Form of Cities and From Painting to Understanding: An Overview on European Urban Spaces, taught by Marco Trisciuoglio and his research unit within the PhD Programme in Architecture. History and Project at Politecnico di Torino and in lectures’ series at Southeast University in Nanjing. Both courses share a common ambition: to explore how cities take form, change over time, and can be interpreted through different modes of representation.
The volume is articulated in two parts. Mapping examines ten cities through ten key maps, introducing major figures, methods, and questions in urban morphology, ranging from archaeological surveys to typological analyses, from perceptual approaches to contemporary interpretations of urban form. Painting shifts the focus to images, showing how paintings, engravings, photographs, comics and movies illuminate the cultural, symbolic, and experiential dimensions of urban space. Together, the two sections outline a multifaceted way of reading the city that bridges analytical rigor and visual interpretation.
The contribution of the PhD candidates is crucial to the book. Their drawings, commentaries, and critical counterpoints accompany each lecture, forming a continuous dialogue between teaching and research.
Designed both as an introduction and as an invitation, the book encourages readers to approach urban form with curiosity and analytical precision, learning to navigate the interplay between representation, history, and the lived experience of the city. The counterpoints between morphology and transition that close the book further underline these aspects.
Rossella Gugliotta, PhD, is a Post-Doc Research Fellow at the Politecnico di Torino, Department of Architecture and Design.
Marco Trisciuoglio, PhD and architect, is Full Professor in Architectural and Urban Design at Politecnico di Torino, Department of Architecture and Design, where, from 2018 to 2024 was Head of the PhD Program Architecture. History and Project.
Preface
Li Bao
Introduction
Martina Crapolicchio, Rossella Gugliotta
Mapping Urban Morphologies
Marco Trisciuoglio
Pompeii and the Map by William Barnard Clarke
Lecture
Beyond the urban morphology of Pompeii
Cristian Dallere
Rome and the Map by Giambattista Nolli
Lecture
The Forms of Simplicity: the Nolli Map
Caterina Juric
Venice and the Map by Saverio Muratori
Lecture
Muratori as an investigator. The conjectural operational method for morphological studies
Elena Ghiacci, Riccardo Ronzani
Como and the Map by Gianfranco Caniggia
Lecture
Operative or Operational? The terminology of Practice in Muratori and Caniggia
Martina Crapolicchio, Alessandro Lovisolo
Torino and the Map by Augusto Cavallari Murat
Lecture
The legacy of Cavallari-Murat research
Federica Joe Gardella, Rossella Gugliotta
Palermo and the Map by Pier Luigi Cervellati
Lecture
A typological study to guide the rebirth of Palermo Historical Center
Riccardo Biondi
Paris and the Map by Le Corbusier
Lecture
From European rejection to experimentation in Brasilia
Simona Canepa
Boston and the Map by Kevin Lynch
Lecture
Perception and Place: Revisiting Kevin Lynch’s Legacy in Urban Studies
Ezgi Nur Güngör, Didem Türk Grigoletto
London and the Map by Space Syntax
Lecture
London’s Hidden Blueprint: Unveiling Urban Dynamics through Space Syntax
Xiao Xiao
Tokyo and the book by Fumihiko Maki
Lecture
The Tokyo Imperial Residence, an “empty centre” and a point of contact between high and low
Federico Madaro
A conceptual map
Marco Trisciuoglio
Painting Urban Morphologies
Marco Trisciuoglio
The rising of the Italian city. The form of Siena in 1338-1339
Lecture
The invention of the perspective. The form of Nowhere in 1484
Lecture
Life, reality and atmosphere of the European City. The form of Delft in 1660-1661
Lecture
Urban design as a drama. The form of Rome in 1748-1774
Lecture
The Rule and the Invention. The form of Venice in 1756-1759
Lecture
The perception of the modern city composition. The form of Paris in 1873
Lecture
The industrial city. The form of Milan in 1922
Lecture
Urban space into a camera. The form of Paris in 1950
Lecture
Complexity and contradictions in contemporary cities. The form of Berlin in 1987
Lecture
The dystopian city between science fiction and comics. The form of Shaft City in 1981-1988
Lecture
From painting to architectural drawing: an Atlas
Martina Crapolicchio, Rossella Gugliotta
Discussing on Urban Morphologies
The language of urban rules. How regulations shape the city
Martina Crapolicchio
The invisible form. Four topological diagram to city design
Rossella Gugliotta
Bridging Morphological Studies and Parametric Approach to Design Hybrid Spaces
Michela Barosio, Hongye Wu
The urban form of popular habitat. Reading the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area
Santiago Gomes
A Chinese post-scriptum
Marco Trisciuoglio
Antiphrasis
Marco Romano