Master in Advanced Architecture (2) – Final Presentation

The second year of the Master in Advanced Architecture at IAAC culminated in a series of thesis presentations showcasing cutting-edge architectural research developed across seven thematic clusters. Each agenda addressed a pressing question at the intersection of environment, computation, fabrication and design—proposing architecture as a tool for systems thinking and material innovation.

Throughout the year, students tackled real-world complexity through a hands-on methodology grounded in experimentation and prototyping. Their final theses combined digital tools, speculative inquiry and ecological awareness to engage with urgent challenges in our built and natural environments.

Projects from the Digital Urban Landscapes cluster explored how biodiversity and resilience can be embedded into urban systems. Nature-based solutions, ecological monitoring and interspecies infrastructures were deployed to propose new logics of coexistence—where architecture serves both human and more-than-human life.

In the Materially Responsive Architecture cluster, students worked with bio-based and circular materials to rethink the metabolism of buildings. Techniques such as urban mining, responsive systems and adaptive envelopes were used to investigate how construction can become more resource-efficient, context-driven and regenerative.

The Interactive Architecture cluster focused on inclusive and sensory-driven environments. Using computational feedback, co-design strategies and behavioral analysis, students designed spaces that react and adapt to users—enhancing both experience and participation.

Within Algorithmic Design I & II, the focus was on integrating big data, simulations and custom interfaces into architectural processes. The projects combined machine learning, environmental parameters and spatial logic to inform performance-driven proposals capable of adapting to changing conditions.

Students in the Advanced Manufacturing cluster explored automation and digital fabrication to reshape how we assemble buildings. Prefabrication, robotic milling, disassembly strategies and multi-material systems came together in construction methods that embrace efficiency without compromising creativity.

Finally, the Biom Architecture cluster examined how living systems can inform architectural form and performance. By working with growth logics, organic processes and hybrid biotic materials, students proposed architectures that are not just situated in nature—but part of it.

Across all clusters, the presentations reflected IAAC’s commitment to architectural education as a testing ground for systemic transformation—where technology, ecology and design converge in the pursuit of advanced, actionable futures.

Explore the programme here.

Academic Credits
The projects were developed by the MAA02 Class of 23/25, under the academic direction of Areti Markopoulou and coordination by Kevin Matar. Each Thesis Cluster was supported by a dedicated team of advisors and experts:

• Digital Urban Landscapes: Chiara Farinea and Andrea Balestrini

• Materially Responsive Architecture: Areti Markopoulou and Nikol Kirova

• Interactive Architecture: Firas Safieddine and Andrea Conserva

• Algorithmic Design I: Oana Taut and Victor Engelhard Suarez

• Algorithmic Design II: Marcos Cruz and Ricardo Mayor Luque

• Advanced Manufacturing: Marielena Papandreou and Valentino Tagliaboschi

• Biom Architecture: Chiara Farinea and Jonathan Minchin, with expert support from Nuria Conde Pueyo

Final thesis reviews were carried out by an international jury, including: Edoardo Rico, Esther Vera Moreno, Mathilde Marengo, Jonathan Minchin, Charlene Smith, Jacinto Seguí Méndez, Pia Behmuaras, Fiona Demeur, Alexandre Dubor, Ipek Attaroglu, Tom Svilans, Amparo Monfort, Estefanía Mejía, and Martyn Dade-Robertson.