Settlement principles between rural and urban: models of transformation in Italy and Spain

The paper focuses on the relationship between urban and rural in architectural transformations, shifting the focus away from the urban perspective. It addresses the challenge of urban and suburban expansion, which often results in inconsistent architectural styles due to the incorporation of rural and semi-rural areas into cities. The research aims to investigate alternative settlement methods in which the sense of living the “non-urban contemporary” could be integrated or not in the urban expansion. Employing analogical and comparative methodologies, the research examines how rural architectural characteristics can be transposed into urban settings, proposing various approaches to the integration of urban and rural elements. Through historical examples and case studies, categories related to "rurality" are defined and analysed compositionally. The study emphasizes the importance of qualitative analysis in the evolving relationship between urban and rural spaces, suggesting potential architectural transformations and experimental approaches for further experimentations to address contemporary challenges