Adaptive reuse of the hidden structure of the hanging garden block of Palazzo Ducale in Mantova

Cities, the human territory, are diverse and layered, meanwhile, beyond all those exposed layers, there is always a hidden layer beneath. We are living on the exposed side but supported by the hidden part. By discover the layers beneath the surface, the colossal city hidden from view could be revealed, and the exposed side could be better understood. A huge and complicated complex with numerous layers, Palazzo Ducale in Mantova is more appropriate to be described as a city instead of a palace. Since we already have plenty of knowledge about its exposed layers, this project is to explore the possibilities of the hidden layer. By revealing the hidden space never used before with inserting new functions in the Cortile Pensile block, Cortile delle Otto Face, and the old stable, not only the potential optimizing those inside space is shown, but also the possibility to recompose the outside space is brought to light.