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PORTA PORTESE SUNDAYS

The studio studied and analyzed the Nolli map in efforts to reorganize the site at one of the historic gates of Rome, Porta Portese. We divided the site into smaller sites. Our focus was on Via Portuense. The city of Rome wanted to rearrange the street for tour bus parking. The program called for car parking for the employees in the area and wider sidewalks for pedestrians. We used Roman motifs to order the sections of the street. The center of the street is divided into two driving lanes with Roman mosaics as each lane and the written story of the fall of the Roman Empire acting as the street dividers. Every Sunday, the street is closed to all cars and buses as the site accommodates the Porta Portese Flea Market. The mosaic on the street turns into a walkway for pedestrians so that they can experience the images and the story as they rummage through the market.