Ex Cinema Maestoso

The Ex Cinema Maestoso, built in 1912 as movie theatre, has become over time a symbol of the city of Milan. Closed in 2007, the building has reopened with a new “collective function”, becoming a Virgin Active’ sports centre. The aim of this renovation project (5.000 square meters) was not to make a clean slate of the pre-existence, but on the contrary, to meet the new needs while preserving the memory of the place. The new brass coating and the glass tiles of the roof make the building’s presence in the urban area special, while the wide windows encourage the dialog with the surrounding city.

Deamicisarchitetti, founded by Giacomo De Amicis in 2005, focuses its projects on enhancing that typically Italian ability to interpret and blend together ideas and languages from different places, times, and cultural contexts. The ambition is to create projects that retain a sense of time but that are new and original in their outcome and meaning with particular attention to the connections with the physical and cultural pre-existences. The works designed and built in 15 years of activity range over all scales and in all fields of application, from building renovation to new construction.

The studio has received numerous awards including the Inarch 2020, Iconic Award 2020, the International Architecture Awards 2021, and the Plan Award 2021. Deamicisarchitetti took part also in the Biennale of Architecture 2018, Italy pavilion.