Spatio-temporal continuity in post-earthquake architecture of Francesco Venezia's anomalous monuments in the Belice Valley

Abstract

This study investigates the architectural interventions of Francesco Venezia in the Belice Valley after the 1968 earthquake, with a particular focus on the c and the Open-Air Theatre in Salemi. Employing a qualitative, design-driven methodology, the research integrates formal spatial analysis with interpretative frameworks from spatial theory, cultural memory studies, and phenomenological approaches to architectural experience. Primary sources, including on-site surveys, original drawings, and project documentation, are complemented by critical essays and historical accounts. The analysis centers on the theme of spatio-temporal continuity, examining how Venezia's works engage with memory, ruins, and the fragmented identity of place. The findings reveal that Venezia's design process anchored in reinterpretation rather than reconstruction produces anomalous monuments that reestablish a sense of historical depth while resisting conventional forms of memorialization. His architecture articulates a dialectical relationship between absence and presence, solidifying a new spatial narrative in a landscape marked by trauma and displacement. This paper presents a globally applicable design paradigm for handling cultural memory, identity, and continuity in the architecture of crisis and recovery by suggesting a substitute for traditional post-disaster restoration.

Keywords

Post-earthquake architecture / Cultural memory / Spatial continuity / Francesco Venezia

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