Due to their ability to construct discourses, guide design choices and coagulate interests and sponsors, spatial concepts are considered an important urbanistic planning tool. The hypothesis, here advanced, is that the use of spatial concepts in contemporary regional projects requires an appropriate vocabulary of definitions, capable of conveying a new and intense imaginative and conceptual effort. This contribution proposes the analysis of three recurring spatial concepts in urbanism: the archipelago, the carpet and the mosaic. Through the analysis of contemporary case studies and the reconstruction of the three spatial concept genealogies, the article aims to clarify how they propose different forms of territory and society, assuming different rules, operating methods and transformation tools.
Keywords: Spatial concept, urbanistic project, metaphors, regional design