Innovation Scenarios in Digital Documentation of Complex Heritage Buildings for Seismic Risk Mitigation

Abstract. The research started after the earthquake that hit the Emilia area (part of the Emilia-Romagna region, in the north-east of Italy) in 2012. The significant damage suffered by the historical-architectural buildings, has led the regional administration and the public bodies responsible for heritage conservation to trigger different actions aimed at the reconstruction, conservation and management of cultural heritage, developed in the following years. Among these, the establishment of a regional body focused on the overall coordination of reconstruction (the Emilia-Romagna Reconstruction Agency - Sisma 2012), and the financing of specific research that could propose advancements in documentation, recovery, and risk mitigation. This research is part of the actions undertaken, and it's focused on the improvement of systems traditionally used for seismic damage survey (a sheet-based damage recording) by connecting these analog procedures to 3D digital environments for multi-layer analyses. The aim is to develop an integrated and extended documentation of architectural assets within an optimised workflow, combining sheets with currently used digital survey tools and methodologies. The developed multi-level information framework includes different levels of investigation, which were applied on different case studies. The research is focused on a specific architectural typology, namely the historical theatres, and the paper presents in particular the methodological approach and main outcomes from the assessment of the Teatro Nuovo di Mirandola, in the province of Modena.