Preserving alpine architecture through drawings

A new publication, a panel discussion and projects by EPFL students consider the future of alpine villages and their often-abandoned architectural heritage - particularly their emblematic granaries. On May 4, the Médiathèque du Valais in Sion will host a panel discussion featuring professors from EPFL and the Polytechnic University of Turin, with Valais officials and local architects. The discussion will focus on ways to revitalize mountain villages. This event, the first of its kind, will be open to the public. Alpine hamlets, some of which have been left abandoned, have one thing in common: their granaries. These raccards , as they are known, are a valuable heritage that must be preserved, according to Nicola Braghieri, an associate professor in EPFL's architecture section and co-organizer of the Sion event: 'We need to take a scientific approach to this rural architecture. Not all of these buildings have been properly recorded, and unless they're renovated or revitalized in some other way, they'll end up being destroyed.' For Braghieri, the removal of these structures, some of which date back to the 16^th century, would be a major loss for our global cultural heritage.