Lingotto

Lingotto is a district of Turin, whose appearance and development was primarily determined by the Fiat Group, which in 1916 built a car factory there. The plant is located on the Via Nizza and was opened after seven years of construction in 1923. The production plant was the largest and most advanced of its time and even had a one -kilometer test track as a circuit on the roof. The finished vehicles could be driven on the roof so directly after production and complete test rounds. Until the late 1970s up to 80 different car models were produced. The final closing took place in 1982.

According to the general decline of the district and the ever progressing decay of the plant site, the desire for a revival of the terrain was expressed by the population. After numerous demonstrations, the authorities relented and opened an architectural competition for the redesign and modernization of the exhibition. As winner of the competition Renzo Piano showed the conceived of a modern cultural and exhibition center with a concert hall, a multiplex cinema, five star Hotel Le Meridien, shopping center and with the questions on the roof of the cube for the Pinacoteca Giovanni e Marella Agnelli, while the outer shaping of the plant kept. The renovation and modernization work was completed in 1989.