In the world of construction, glass is a material that defies convention. Seemingly eternal, yet fragile. Energy-intensive and complex to produce, yet often discarded. Above all, still too rarely explored in processes of reuse and regeneration. From these contradictions stems the dialogue between Park and 6:AM, a design brand that has made glass its expressive grammar.

Founded in 2018 by Edoardo Pandolfo and Francesco Palù, 6:AM blends the perspective of the designer with the sensibility of the artisan. Based in Milan with roots in Murano, the creative duo pursues a clear goal: to redefine the language of glass through a contemporary and experimental vision, while preserving the tactile and material value of tradition.

For Resourceful Intelligence, 6:AM contributed to the creation of one of the two façades that compose the installation on display at the Corderie dell’Arsenale, part of the Biennale Architettura 2025. The regenerated glass panels come from the disused window frames of Palazzo Missori, a 1930s Milanese building designed by Marcello Piacentini and now protected as architectural heritage. An icon of Italian rationalism set in one of the city’s most layered urban contexts—between medieval memories and twentieth-century transformations—the building was recently renovated through a respectful and philological approach. Alongside a careful restoration of its original elements, the project introduced new spaces, such as a rooftop volume and a light-filled central atrium, that enter into dialogue with the existing architecture in a contemporary key. It is precisely from the removal of the old window frames that the raw material for the glass façade took shape.

Through a process of fusing the glass onto steel molds and fully manual finishing, each panel was transformed into a unique surface. The resulting opacity, caused by the reaction of soda within the glass during firing, reveals the glass’s original exposure to sunlight: denser where it had been more exposed, more transparent where it had been protected. What emerges is an architectural skin that does not conceal imperfection but welcomes it as a trace of time, a layering of meaning. A wall that reads like an urban relic, suggesting new possible futures for the most transparent and enigmatic of architectural materials.

This collaboration began long before the Biennale. Already in 2024, during Milan Design Week, Park and 6:AM had worked together on the Palazzo Missori project, laying the groundwork for a shared exploration. From that experiment came FLOAT, a collection by 6:AM that explores the potential of glass regeneration. The recovered panes are fused, textured, or layered to create new functional elements —tables, shelving, and modular surfaces— that preserve the narrative value of the material, giving it a new identity without erasing its memory.

With Resourceful Intelligence, this vision takes the form of built architecture. It is an installation that doesn’t merely speak of circularity, but puts it into practice. It doesn’t repeat a narrative, it tests it. And thanks to collaborations like this, it continues to expand the boundaries of what architecture can —and must— be today.

Resourceful Intelligence is a project by Park, Accurat, Prof. Gabriele Masera, Prof. Francesco Pittau, Michele Versaci - Department of Architecture, Built Environment and Construction Engineering, Politecnico di Milano Technical Collaborators: 6:AM, BUROMILAN, celexon, Fornace S.Anselmo, WICONA by Hydro Supporters: DeA Capital Real Estate SGR S.p.A., Medit S.r.l., Atlas Concorde, Fantoni, FRANZEN ITALIA srl, KALDEWEI, Rimadesio, Saint-Gobain Thanks: Despe S.p.A., Gruppo Finleonardo S.p.A.

Photo 1, 3-9 by Nicola Colella. Photo 2 by Tommaso Mariniello. Photo 10 by Piercarlo Quecchia, DSL Studio