Lecce City Guide With Ben Van Berkel, Unstudio

Lecce City Guide
With Ben Van Berkel, UNStudio

In everything Beulah undertakes, we are defined by civic-minded responsibility, rigorous research, global vision, innovative thinking and a passion for design and culture. We frequently look to a range of industry and thought leaders to share their thinking, insights and perspectives, often drawn from lived experiences.

With a wealth of inspiration and rich storytelling at our fingertips, we share this with you by way of our Beulah City Guide Series, an exploration of cities around the world, through the eyes of compelling industry and thought leaders.

UNStudio was born in 1997 out of the Van Berkel & Bos Architectuurbureau, which Ben van Berkel and Caroline Bos set up 10 years prior. Established as a network of specialists in architecture, urban development and infrastructure, UNStudio has grown to include more than 300 staff coming from 27 countries, working on projects around the world from their offices in Amsterdam, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Frankfurt and soon Melbourne.

UNStudio’s completed work includes the Erasmus Bridge in Rotterdam, the Moebius House near Amsterdam, the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart, Arnhem Central Station in the Netherlands, the Raffles City mixed-use development in Hangzhou, the Canaletto Tower in London and the Singapore University of Technology and Design. Joining this impressive list of projects will be our very own Southbank by Beulah project, with UNStudio, in collaboration with local Australian firm Cox Architecture, designing the winning concept, formerly known as ‘Green Spine’.

Innovative and boundary-pushing projects in cities all over the world.

With incredibly innovative and boundary-pushing projects in cities all over the world, we are excited to share with you the following city guide, shared by UNStudio Founder and Principal Architect, Ben van Berkel. This guide discusses Ben’s memories and experiences of, and perspectives on Lecce. For the unacquainted, Lecce is a 2000-year-old city in southern Italy, in the region of Apulia, at the heel of the peninsula.

Lecce, Southern Italy

Ben, thanks for joining our City Guide Series! You’ve chosen to explore Lecce with us – why did you choose this city?

Lecce is one of the most beautiful, but as yet relatively undiscovered, cities in Europe. I first heard of it when I was a student at the AA in London, as they had a wonderful book in the library about how the city had been developed on an urban planning level.

One of the fascinating urban principles was that they embedded a new kind of wayfinding into the structure of the city, by way of symbols on the columns that are found all over the city. These symbols tell stories about the region where the columns were carved and what kind of communities they were.

All of the buildings in Lecce are made from a particular kind of local limestone (called ‘Lecce Stone’), that is found in the region, to the extent that the city looks and feels like one big building. It has quite a phenomenal effect. Lecce is filled with historic churches, archeological sites and a multitude of plazas of all different sizes that give the city a very public feeling.

Where do you stay in this city? Any particular neighbourhood or hotel?

La Fiermontina. It’s an urban resort, on the edge of the city centre. It’s an old farmhouse and an 18th century Palazzo that have been beautifully restored and transformed into a hotel. As Lecce is in a relatively undiscovered area, everything has a very local character. There are not so many tourists, so accommodations are also very reasonably priced.

Lecce is one of the most beautiful, but as yet relatively undiscovered, cities in Europe.

Lecce Southern Italy Clear Sea

Can you share with us your three favourite picks for each category below?

Cultural Institutions

The Church of the Holy Cross
Beautiful frescos, just outside Lecce
Also, beautiful frescos in Galatina

Places to eat:

A good Spot for lunch: Doppiozero – Via Guglielmo Paladini, 2, 73100 Lecce LE, Italy
We had amazing espresso with pistachio cream here, it tastes like dessert! BonaSciana Caffè & Cucina, Piazza Sant’Oronzo, 16/17, 73100 Lecce LE, Italy
For the best cakes, Caffè Alvino, Piazza Sant’Oronzo, 30, 73100 Lecce LE, Italy
One of the best restaurants we went to: Mamma Elvira
I loved this restaurant. It’s still visited by a lot of locals, simple food, great quality – Alle due Corti, Corte dei Giugni, 1, Via Leonardo Prato, 42, 73100 Lecce LE, Italy

Nightlife destinations:

For an aperitivo: Mamma Elvira Enoteca, Via Umberto I, 19, 73100 Lecce LE, Italy

Mamma Elvira Enoteca

Things to do in Lecce:

Try the coffee. It’s the best coffee in Italy. Espresso mixed with pistachio paste, wonderful!

Architecture:

Lecce is filled with Baroque buildings and churches that house amazing frescos. There are also a number of interesting archeological sites. The city has its own unique character and style of architecture. Unlike the Baroque architecture found in Rome or Northern Italy, it is lighter and less dramatic. In Lecce you get the impression that the Rococo period had already started during the Baroque period. Very unique.

Finally, do you have any tips, tricks or advice when travelling to Lecce?

Lecce is not as easy or fast to access as other places in the region, but if you fly to Salento Airport in Brindisi, it’s just a half hour’s drive to the centre of Lecce. There is so much to see that you can easily fill a week here. The food is fantastic, uncomplicated, but wonderful. I would highly recommend renting a car and driving around the region. It’s near the east coast, which has truly stunning landscapes.

About Ben Van Berkel

Ben van Berkel, Unstudio

Ben is the founder and principal Architect of the international architecture firm UNStudio and UNSense, an Arch Tech company based in Amsterdam that designs and integrates human-centric tech solutions for the built environment.

Alongside his practice, Ben has lectured and taught at architectural schools around the world. From 2011 to 2018, Ben held the Kenzo Tange Visiting Professor’s Chair at Harvard University Graduate School of Design, where he led a studio on health and architecture. Central to Ben’s teaching is the inclusive approach of architectural works integrating virtual and material organisation and engineering constructions.

In 2017, Ben also gave a TEDx presentation about health and architecture, and he is currently a member of the Taskforce Team/Advisory Board Construction Industry for the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs.