Contributions   Conference session 1   Conference session 2   Conference session 3   Abstracts' submission Valorisation, safe-guarding and preservation of architects' own houses Chairman: Maurizio Boriani Maurizio Boriani is Professor in Restauro urbano at the Politecnico di Milano.He is author of "Restauro e moderno. Conservazione, ripristino, copia" (1990); "Milano contemporanea" (1991); "Natura e architettura" (1987).   To preserve architects' houses raises several problems like those raised by artists and writers' ones. They, as well as all people's houses, are the result of a way of dwelling inscribed in the house through the course of time, with changes and additions. They can be considered as real palimpsests which many scholars have often written about and which deserve consideration. Concerning architects' houses, we often come to terms with an initial project, which provides a concrete example of the idea of dwelling and of building. It can be often noticed that the home and the studio are strictly connected and that they directly go along with their owners' personal and professional events. It is not uncommon to observe how the architect's wife/husband, being an architect or an artist too, has often offered his/her close contribution. All these elements should be noticed, mentioned and accounted. A good rule to follow would be to preserve the house as it appears at its very last phase - the most authenticone - as it can be perceived as the layered stratification of a whole life. Therefore, there is no need to seek for a primitive state or for the signs of the architect's maturity, as it becomes necessary not to erase the building's historical "material" and its interiors. A further problem concerns the attempt to make a museum out of these houses. It is necessary to prevent an excess of installations and technical implants that could overcome the aspect of the living space of the house. In particular it should be avoided to make a distinction between the "noble" spaces of the house, holy preserved, and the "poor" ones (kitchen, bathroom, garage, etc.) usually destined to function as supports. Besides, it is advisable to moderate (or even to abolish, if notin exceptional cases) the insertion of new furniture and implants. In such cases, the new changes must be made clearly visible. Likewise, it is also suggested that some "interferences" should not occur, such as the joining of different residences, different furniture arrangements, and all that could alter the authenticity of the spaces and the characteristic materials they are made of.