Phd in HISTORY, REPRESENTATION AND RESTORATION OF ARCHITECTURE

Thesis title: Digitalizzazione per la documentazione delle superfici dell’architettura storica. Potenzialità e definizione della scheda cantiere

This research focuses on documenting interventions on the surfaces of historic architecture as an essential act of knowledge for heritage preservation. Architectural surfaces represent the most exposed and fragile component of the built heritage, yet their memory is often obscured, especially in the case of privately owned buildings and interventions concerning the so-called “minor” heritage. In this field, the distinction between maintenance and restoration becomes blurred, and the absence of clear operational protocols makes it difficult to reconstruct the transformations that have occurred over time. The study accepts the broader framework of digital transition and the progressive integration of ICT, GIS, and BIM technologies into conservation practices, acknowledging digital tools not merely as instruments of representation but as a necessary condition for the continuity of care and the preservation of memory. The aim is to propose a documentation model for surface interventions that can collect, structure, and transmit the information emerging from the conservation site, regarded here as an irreplaceable source of knowledge. The outcome of this research is the instrument known as the “Scheda Cantiere” (Conservation Site Sheet), a digital operational protocol divided into six sections, designed to record and manage data on surface interventions through the use of controlled vocabularies. Its experimental application in five different case-study sites has demonstrated its effectiveness as a tool for informed management, knowledge enhancement, and the preservation of the historical memory of conservation works.