It knows: “Bari is Bari” (in Italy as a figure of speech that means that something cannot be described except with its name) and with time it becomes more beautiful. In the last decade, in fact, we have witnessed an exponential growth of the Apulian capital which has been the setting for various successful films and TV series and in 2022 hosted over 435,000 tourists. Il comune è tutt’oggi in via di sviluppo, si sta assistendo ad un processo di rinnovamento urbano che ha portato a grandi cambiamenti nel panorama architettonico ed estetico. Il progetto di riforma urbana prevede l’ampliamento delle aree pedonali, la creazione e l’allargamento della rete viaria al fine di migliorare le connessioni tra i vari quartieri e ridurre il traffico. Numerosi sono gli interventi per la riqualificazione delle aree verdi pubbliche. Insomma, Bari si sta dando da fare per migliorare il suo volto giorno per giorno ma, partiamo dal principio: quali sono le architetture e i luoghi che la caratterizzano e l’hanno sempre caratterizzata? Quali sono i protagonisti di questa continua crescita della città?

“Bari Vecchia” – Historical centre of town

We could only begin by talking about the old city of Bari: an extraordinary sight to behold.
It is a concentration of history, culture, architecture and traditions that is reflected in every part of it.
Old Bari is a mix of ancient streets and alleys, churches, noble palaces and small stores.
Some of the streets are paved with basalt cobblestones, while others are made up of ancient stone basole.
Most of the streets are bordered by brick walls with small windows that allow passersby to admire the inside of the buildings. Narrow alleys are connected to the palaces with arches and lintels.
Of these streets, the best known is via Arco Basso: “the street of orecchiette” where housewives set up table and board and prepare the typical orecchiette.
Another element of old Bari are the small stores found in every corner of the city.
These are antique stores, grocery stores, jewelry stores and craft stores.
They feature traditional design and are rich in architectural details that reflect the centuries of the town’s history.
A constant in the architecture of old Bari are the churches.
Indeed, the city is full of small and large churches and cathedrals that stand out with their Gothic, Baroque, and Romanesque facades. The bell towers are often decorated with statues and ornamental motifs, while the facades are embellished with sculptures and architecture that testify to the city’s cultural richness. The aristocratic palaces found in the old city, in the Murattiano suburb, are an authentic architectural jewel. They are buildings of great grandeur, with richly decorated facades and wrought-iron balconies. The windows are usually framed with numerous floral motifs; many of these buildings are richly frescoed. All this makes old Bari a magical place. A journey between history and tradition, between architecture and culture. A place where time seems to stand still and where it is possible to breathe in the atmosphere of yesteryear.

Mercantile Square

Piazza Mercantile is a historic square located in the historic center of Bari. It is located at the foot of an ancient Renaissance fortress overlooking the sea. The square is one of the largest and oldest squares in the city and has also been the epicenter of commercial life for centuries. The square was built in the 16th century and was used as a trading area for ships arriving in Bari from the Mediterranean. It saw the passage of several emperors, generals and merchants, such asEmperor Charles V in 1535, who signed a treaty with the city. During the 18th century, Piazza Mercantile was one of the largest and busiest squares in Bari. The square was the center of lively commercial activity and cultural exchange. Local merchants and those from other parts of the region came here to trade. An open-air market was held here, where food, handicrafts, textiles, furniture and other goods were sold. In recent decades, Mercantile Square has seen some major changes: it has been restored, renewing the pavement with Minervino stone basalt provided by us (along with a number of accessories such as traffic bollards); it was equipped with a Roman-era fountain and a statue of a woman representing the city. It was also equipped with a network of pedestrian streets, which connected the square with the harbor, making the square more accessible. Today, Piazza Mercantile is one of the most visited places in Bari. It is one of the city’s main tourist attractions and is a great place to walk around, relax and enjoy local cuisine or have coffee with friends. Various festivals, concerts, shows and other cultural events take place here.

Nazario Sauro Promenade

It is one of the largest and most scenic coastlines in Apulia. It starts at Punta Perotti, south of the city, and extends six kilometers to Punta Prosciutto, to the north. Along its route, it has witnessed numerous historical events and offers breathtaking views of the Adriatic coast. Initially, the waterfront was an expanse of white sand and blue sea overlooked by the city of Bari. In 1923, the Italian government decided to build a waterfront road connecting Bari to neighboring towns. Thus it was that Nazario Sauro Road, in honor of the Italian admiral who led the fleet during World War I, began to be built. Along the way, numerous buildings were constructed, including the Church of St. Nicholas, the Tower of St. Christopher, the Bari Aquarium, the Petruzzelli Theater, the Government Palace, the Basilica of St. Nicholas, and the Swabian Castle. Several benches, fountains, sculptures and other decorative elements have made the waterfront a pleasant place to visit. Today, the Nazario Sauro waterfront is the symbol of the city overlooking the Adriatic Sea for which we provided the basis for the lampposts that are the protagonists, along with the landscape, of Bari’s most emblematic postcards.

Petruzzelli Theater

Bari’s Petruzzelli Theater is one of Italy’s most important theaters and is considered one of southern Italy’s most valuable cultural heritages. Its history dates back to 1889 when it was built by the Petruzzelli brothers, Giuseppe and Domenico, who had planned it as a drama theater. Over the years, the Theater has seen both classical and contemporary performances by internationally recognized artists and companies. In 1927 the building was enlarged with the construction of new boxes and galleries designed by architect Umberto Brunelleschi. Then in 1948 the Petruzzelli Theater was purchased by the City of Barletta to become a public cultural center and to be enjoyed by all Barletta citizens. Public interventionism was not only limited to expansion but also to financing the theater companies presented on the stage. After World War II, the facility’s cultural activities expanded greatly with the aim of promoting the local area. On Oct. 14, 1993, the theater suffered a tragic fire; the reconstruction of the theater took shape in the intentions of the city’s municipal administration to promote an accurate reconstruction that would reflect the original grandeur of this historic structure. In fact, in February 1996, reconstruction work and the construction of new multipurpose rooms began. As part of the theater’s redevelopment, there is room for paving the area outside the building with traffic bollards that conceal the LED lighting system. Finally, in 2009 it was inaugurated in the presence of distinguished artistic directors and other prominent figures. Today, the cultural mission of this place is to continue to promote the arts and offer diverse reading opportunities to the population of the region’s cultural policies.

Parks and green areas

The municipality held competitions to restore some abandoned areas and buildings. Prominent among them is the Rossani Barracks, a historic military structure in the city, built in 1859 and named after General Carlo Rossani, who served in the Italian army during the Second War of Independence. The barracks, closed in 1991, was also home to the Italian Army’s Officer Cadet School. The project to restore the outdoor space in order to expand the range of public spaces for socialization and sports practice has the signature of architect Massimiliano Fuksas, author of the restyling of Bari’s Central Station. It is the largest urban park in the city. The green area covers an area of about 30,000 square meters and is located south of Aldo Moro Square, across the tracks from the new face of the station. Within the park there are planned areas for sports, such as a basketball court and skate area, and children’s play areas. An area that has been underutilized by citizens for years is thus recovered.

New residential complexes

A big player in the 2023 news in this area of Bari’s city renewal is architect Stefano Boeri ‘s plan to revisit his Green Skyscraper project in Milan in a scaled-down key adapted to the Bari context. Boeri’s green forest project has become world famous as an innovative form of architecture that combines a positive environmental impact with an urban lifestyle. This has been repurposed in Bari as a complex of 130 apartments in 8 floors overlooking the waterfront and, similar to the Milan complex, will house over trees, shrubs and a variety of plants. Used not only to decorate the building, but also to reduce air pollution, greenhouse effect and noise pollution. In addition, the trees and plants provide a resting area for birds and insects, thus enhancing the biodiversity of the area. Boeri’s Bosco Verticale is an example of how architecture can contribute positively to the environment, and now, the city of Bari, too, will welcome “a tree house that also houses humans and birds.”

Suburban areas

These redevelopments are concentrated not only in the metropolitan city of Bari but also in the districts and neighborhoods on the fringes. San Girolamo, located on the northwestern outskirts of the Apulian capital and enclosed between two blades, is Bari’s only neighborhood in close contact with the Adriatic Sea. In 2019, the ward saw the creation of a new kilometer-long “waterfront” for which we were asked to create furniture elements such as bollards and seating, as well as the stairs leading from the pedestrian area of the IX Maggio waterfront to the beach. Another ward undergoing restyling is Torre a Mare, a neighborhood located in the northern part of the city. It is one of the oldest neighborhoods in the city, and has a history dating back to the 16th century, consisting of a series of historic buildings and streets, stretching out to the sea. Again, the protagonist of the intervention is the relationship between the sea and the village promoted by the pedestrianization of the coastal road, for which we made the overlay maps positioned around the entire perimeter of the redeveloped stretch of waterfront, and those that enclose the decorative shrubs; these have the function of large linear seats. However, the sea is not the only protagonist. The G124 project, coordinated by architect Renzo Piano studies the settlement unity of the St. Paul neighborhood and promotes an intervention of “urban mending” between the new building and the old. In summary, Bari is increasingly becoming a modern, welcoming and vibrant city that is trying to enhance its historical and cultural heritage and become a major tourist destination in southern Italy. This is thanks to the help of international professionals and a thoughtful, forward-looking administration. By now it is established: “Bari is Bari” and it is beautiful. We are proud to have collaborated, at least in part, to make it so and hope to continue to do so.