Between the 17th and the 20th of July, the garden of villa Sormani in Mariano Comense, dating back to the eighteenth century, hosted the first edition of the Rockavilla Festival.

The promoters of the event asked Oblò, with Alberto D’Asaro and Giulia Celentano, to design a small temporary pavilion to be used as a relax area.

Standing at the borders of the large lawn facing the stage, the Chill-out pavilion completes the sequence of reversible structures including the selling area as well as the restoration area.

Very limited resources were available, thus suggesting to opt for a clear selection of few materials, mostly recycled and almost for free.

The crowns of trees, as supporting elements already available on site and endowed with a remarkable scenographic and functional potential, take on the role of the main load-bearing structure, to which the haywire tie-rods are suspended. 

They carry the construction site fabric (orange or green), reinforced by a stabilizing mass of small stones, as well as the lighting system made of catenaries for exteriors; wooden reels and pallets, used as seats and tables, complete the layout.

Starting from these elements, the plan of the Chill-out pavilion is organised as a sum of a “rotunda” (diameter: 7 meters), placed in the direction of the stage, and a “L” shaped veil that strechtes out towards the west wing of the villa.

It is a highly strategic placement: on the one hand, the “rotunda” lays in continuity with the enfilade of the internal rooms, underlining its ambition to function as a proper open air living room; on the other, thanks to its strechted shape, the “L” embraces the existing seats (stone blocks, wall side benches) and makes the whole structure visibile from the entrance to the park along via Montebello, where the public comes from.

As light spots align along the external veil, the slight brightness of this second room contrasts with the warm and wrapround light of the “rotunda”, whose sky is crossed by the catenaries.

The Chill-out pavilion is designed to emphasize the sensations of calmness and intimacy that the timbered bay naturally offers to the visitors.

The semi-transparency of the construction site fabric, that allows it to be looked at through one, two or more veils according to the observer’s point of view, makes it possible to glimpse at the life happening inside, while at the same time defining different degrees of luminosity of the catenaries’ light spreading into the park. The overall effect is that of a “lantern”, continuously and smoothly vibrating as it emerges from the underwood. 

Inside the “rotunda” the luminaries are organised according to a radial pattern that departs from a tight opening into the veil: as such, they seem to suggest the visitor to penetrate into the long row of lindens starting here.