Ex Cinema Embassy

Through the introduction of contemporary design choices, the project transforms the building from within to make room for the Agency’s new offices.

Within the existing envelope, left intact by the works, a new structure in steel, timber, and glass is inserted, partly visible through the former cinema’s wings and at the top floor. Based on a grid of steel pilotis, the volume was raised to preserve archaeological remains linked to the city’s ancient walls. The cinema entrance was also rethought, with a terracotta slat cladding — a material deeply rooted in Bologna’s building tradition — and the addition of a new accessible rooftop terrace.
The ground floor houses the reception area and conference room, while the more operational office spaces are arranged across the raised ground floor and two upper levels, designed for flexibility and reconfiguration. At the rear, a planted garden provides an inhabitable outdoor setting for the people who use the building.
An intervention that engages with the existing fabric without blending into it, setting itself apart through a clear architectural identity.