Levanto, nestled among the folds of the eastern Ligurian Riviera, is an ancient seaside town, a natural gateway to the Cinque Terre National Park. The town has an architectural and artistic heritage that tells a thousand-year history suspended between the hinterland and the Mediterranean. In this context, the church (now deconsecrated) of Nostra Signora della Costa, recently the subject of an intervention by the Genoese architectural firm Caarpa, has been restored and transformed into a multi-purpose center.
A building with a centuries-old history, even before its consecration in the 14th century, the building has changed hands several times over the years, with modifications and extensions that have distorted its internal physiognomy: among the most invasive interventions were the lowering of the floor level, the removal of the marble covering (later used elsewhere) and the construction of a Spartan concrete slab designed to divide the space.
By the mid-twentieth century, the former church was in a state of profound disrepair, exacerbated by rapid post-war urban development and neglect. The restoration project, carried out with care and respect, included a contemporary element at the entrance that recalls sacred architecture: a “choir loft,” a space originally reserved for the choir, made of microperforated metal panels.
Its linear conformation contrasts with the remains of the decorative apparatus of frescoes and stucco. The two curvilinear capitals that support it are a discreet allusion to architectural classicism.
The structure is finished in powder blue, chosen to harmonize with the existing tones of the church walls, and allows a privileged view through a large trefoil window.
In the presbytery and apse, the studio uncovered frescoes and stuccos, freeing them from the patina of time, while choosing to leave visible traces of the church’s twentieth-century history, such as missing sections of plaster, deliberately left visible to tell the story of the building’s recent travails.
The altars, stripped of their original coverings, were treated with lime putty to reveal their shape, while the flooring was replaced with slate slabs arranged in a linear arrangement.
Photo © Studio Campo, Anna Positano
