mercoledì 8 marzo 2017

The soil... a well of great resources!



Dear friends of Arcadia, 



our land is blessed with so many resources!
If we started making a list of all the gifts the Earth gives us, a whole book wouldn't be enough!
Let's just think about the main ones: the earth supports us and keeps us anchored to her with the love of gravity;
it is a wonderful heat and energy container; keeps the moist in; creates habitats for billions of microorganisms, insects and animals; gives shelter to plant roots and feeds them as well... it even has a therapeutic, cleansing and purifying effect!
For centuries, it has been used in the building industry given its excellent  properties, be it raw or cotta for making bricks.
Today, we are discovering again the outstanding characteristics of this material which is right here, beneath our feet...
In Arcadia, we take care of this priceless material by observing it first and then trying to getting to know more of it!
The word soil means anything and nothing at the same time! Let's try to understand what we are talking about. Our soil is made of clay and sandstone whose colors reflect those of our fields, of our hills and of bricks with which old houses were made once: the light grey almost of an indigo shade clay blocks were mixed with the faint ochre of the sandstone.
During the dry times of the year, the farmed fields, almost naked and drained of any organic substances, look like the desert because of its extreme pale color!
When it rains, the clay kicks in, making the soil heavy and sticky.
This soil is every farmer's nightmare, at least that's what they say!!!
It turns out instead, it is perfect for building and plastering and it's just right here!
So, we started looking for the best areas in our soil to select, sift and mix... clay, tufa stone, sands and straw. All these simple ingredients become magic in the hands of he who knows how to create with them!
It is gonna be fun!



Our house is an old rural building made of bricks and stones that we are trying to bring back to its ancient splendour: for the interior walls, we will use raw soil to make the upholstery plastering. Because of the soil properties, this covering allows a natural thermohygrometric regulation that will result in a unique cozy feeling ;) Have you ever been in a house whose walls were covered in dirt? You should try it! We are experimenting with it,  come see us ;)

Restoring the territory

Dear Friends of Arcadia,



 going back to live the territory again means to start a journey, a walk in space and time knowing where you started but not where you will end up... It is such an exciting adventure!Just like in a treasure hunt, the real prize comes step after step, along that same way... made of encounters,deceptions, victories, dead ends and signs that all together help us keep walking on the good path!

So, what brought us here, in this little corner of Romagna, on the border with the Marche region?
What's the story of this medioeval town, Saludecio, and of the hilltop where we are going to live?
We started to ask the Genius Loci (from latin, The guardian spirit of a place)in order to know the vocation of this territory, to discover how its people and its culture lived for centuries here... 
This journey developed between cartographies and historical real estate registries, archives and libraries to look for the Spirit of the place. Not only that! Most of the time, it is people we meet on the road who give us information without almost realizing it!
So, we found out that the original structure of the house dates back to the early 1800s and that probably it was Basilio Albini, forefather of the historical family who owned several buildings in Saludecio, who wanted its construction.
Since then, many stories contributed to the history of this farm and of its heart shaped land...
In the second half of 1900, many agriculturers, breeders and farmers worked this land until it fell in a complete state of abandon for almost thirty years! 
Going back in time, at the end of 1200, something, or rather somebody, had already put the seed for growth in this place. Not far from our house, a mystic, a farmer and pilgrim started to give hospitality to whoever was in need... and since then, he always kept his house door open.




If being a pilgrim means going “per agros”, from the latin walking in the fields, opening new paths and new visions... then maybe the purpose of this place is really this one!
And we are only at the beginning of our wander...