September 16, 2021 – On Monday, September 13, at the new campus of the Politecnico di Milano – recently inaugurated in the presence of the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella – a day of visits, speeches, and memories was held in the Aula Magna named after Engineer Giampiero Pesenti.
To open the event, Ferruccio Resta, Rector of the Politecnico, commemorated Giampiero Pesenti, a graduate of the Milanese university:
“When Giampiero left us a few years ago, the Politecnico mourned the loss of one of its best students and one of its best ambassadors, who brought the culture, education, and experience of the Politecnico around the world and into all of his relationships. Giampiero maintained his connection with us both through research and advanced education initiatives. For this reason, we wanted to honor him, with the help of another great alumnus of the Politecnico, Renzo Piano, to design this architectural intervention in line with a new vision of the university.”
“The Politecnico,” continued the Rector, “is founded on two major pillars that we must always keep in mind: the first is striving for excellence and merit; it is possible to aim to be competitive without neglecting human values: inclusiveness, the right to education, and attention to the most vulnerable.
The second is building a network of partners across Europe: we are connecting with many universities to create a great European university.”
Next, Prof. Emilio Faroldi, Vice-Rector and Professor of Architectural Technology at the Politecnico di Milano, highlighted some key architectural features of the new Campus and the Aula Magna – a project based on the versatility and adaptability of spaces to meet the needs of students and faculty.
«The campus is no longer a closed-off place solely devoted to culture and the transmission of knowledge, but rather presents itself as an integrated and flexible entity – comfortable, interactive, and customizable – capable of expanding the degrees of freedom associated with the use of public space. In a healthy knowledge-based society, the university becomes the city, and the city becomes the university. ».
According to Faroldi, the project made use of targeted architectural operations, interconnected through a principle of continuity, combining new design efforts and new buildings with the enhancement of existing spaces and structures.
Professor Piergaetano Marchetti, President of the Fondazione Corriere della Sera, then spoke, offering a thoughtful and emotional tribute: «Giampiero Pesenti was an entrepreneur who carried on a family business; he knew how and wished to update its scope and methods in response to the evolution of the times. As a top-class engineer, he conceived a project that he then pursued with intense research activity. The interest in innovation – even in mature sectors and in families solidly rooted in the business world – reflects, I believe, the spirit of the founding fathers of these institutions. This is why the naming of this Aula Magna after Giampiero Pesenti – ‘an engineer among engineers,’ a continuer of a noble tradition and, at the same time, an innovator – is especially appropriate ».
Marchetti concluded his speech by recalling some of the traits that characterized Giampiero Pesenti:
“His simplicity, his desire to speak clearly, to look people in the eye, his avoidance of platforms, titles, and accolades; his social sensitivity, which he brought to life through Fondazione Pesenti, making him a worthy heir of the remarkable tradition of Lombard social Catholicism; his great respect for collaborators, from the most junior to the highest in rank.”
On this note, Carlo Pesenti – son of Giampiero, President of Fondazione Pesenti, and CEO of Italmobiliare S.p.A – commented: “This Aula Magna marks an important point in a decades-long history of collaboration between our companies and the Politecnico. Our paths have crossed many times over many years. Our family has received much from the Politecnico, and our companies have helped train a great number of engineers. So, this Aula and this moment are, for me, very timely and consistent with our family’s history.”
Speaking of his father Giampiero Pesenti, he added: «He was a great entrepreneur, and above all a great engineer. His global success was rooted in his being, deeply and truly, an engineer. Beyond studies, far beyond his profession, engineering was in his DNA. Studying at this university shapes people. What remains with us, above all, is the memory of his ethical and moral integrity.”
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