IDENTICITY. Shaping The Urban Transformation

The regeneration of existing spaces as a key process in shaping the future of our cities lies at the core of the event “IDENTICITY. Shaping the Urban Transformation”, conceived and organized by the design studio Rizoma Architetture, scheduled for Wednesday, 15 April 2026, in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Part of Italian Design Day 2026, the initiative reflects the values underpinning Rizoma’s vision, including a strong belief in the social role of architecture and a commitment to cultural contamination.

Patronized by the Embassy of Italy in Tbilisi, the event will take place from 4:00 PM at the Tegeta concept store. This contemporary, industrial space—once associated with infrastructure and movement—has been transformed into a cultural platform through an adaptive reuse intervention, demonstrating how Tbilisi’s identity can be preserved through thoughtful reinterpretation.

The program of IDENTICITY includes both a series of design talks, featuring local and international architecture studios alongside a local cultural research center, and an exhibition of iconic furniture and design pieces by renowned Italian brands.

We have built too much—more than we can truly inhabit—shaping urban landscapes we struggle to understand and transform. We have produced spaces that feel like no man’s land: neighborhoods, malls, industrial zones, logistics hubs, stations, and vast buildings without identity. Many cities were shaped by rigid solutions that no longer relate to their social context, searching for new meaning and a new soul.

 

The architecture of a city is not only material; it is interpretation. It demands the construction of meaning and a redefinition of social space. Entire districts risk becoming residual “junk spaces,” yet they can emerge as resources—ready to host new functions and unexpected futures.

 

Re-framing the city requires planners, architects, designers, and above all citizens. Urban transformation is a political and participatory act grounded in dialogue. Reshaping cities does not require futuristic gestures, but realistic responses rooted in lived experience.

 

We begin from three scales: city, architecture, interior. The city is a fragile palimpsest of memory and conflict. Historic centers, suburbs, and margins must be stitched together and returned to communities.

 

Architecture is no longer an icon, but an open device for second lives. Stations, factories, and schools can evolve beyond single functions. To design is not to freeze form, but to project it forward—opening space to new stories and relationships.

 

Interior spaces are not disposable aesthetics; they are the city’s heart. They demand flexibility, openness, and attention to changing needs. There is no ideal space for ideal people. The future lies in regenerating what already exists, placing people, relationships, and quality of life at the
center of transformation.

 

Rizoma Architetture