Tracing for Tile Vaults Constructions Between Tradition and Advanced Technologies

On the 18th Venice Architecture Biennale (2023), the brick vault Angelus Novus was built at the European Cultural Center (ECC) in Palazzo Mora. The concept and design was developed by the Form Finding Lab (Princeton University) and Skidmore, Owings and Merril (SOM) studio. Starting with the definition of the free forrn double-curved surface, a process of form optimization was performed through an algorithm called FORMERLYMath (developed by Carlo Olivieri), a software designed for the form-finding of compressed or tensile membranes in Mathematica. The installation was inspired by an ancient construction system, that of tile vaults, historically constructed without the use of falsework; a drawing by Antonio da Sangallo illustrates the herringbone equipment of bricks, functional to achieve the structural efficiency of some Renaissance domes (the best known is that of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence). Angelus Novus was built with the use of a single falsework placed in the centrai part of the vault and thanks to the aid of augmented reality: the master mason was guided in the laying of the individuai elements thanks to the overlapping on site of the tracings, previously defined in digital environment. The contribution analyse the work refering to historical experiencies on the relation between tracing and construction