Within the current global context of rapid change, integrated with the potentials of digital technologies, IAAC’s Master in Advanced Architecture (MAA) is committed to the generation of new ideas and applications for Urban Design, Self Sufficiency, Digital Manufacturing Techniques and Advanced Interaction.
In this context IAAC works with a multidisciplinary approach, facing the challenges posed by our environment and the future development of cities, architecture and buildings, through a virtuous combination of technology, biology, computational design, digital and robotic fabrication, pushing innovation beyond the boundaries of a more traditional architectural approach.
Course: MAA01 22/23 Digital Matter Studio
Today, we are facing a change in paradigm in the field of Architecture. Information Era Technologies and their impacts on architecture are drastically changing, and their relationship calls for new or adapted concepts, where physical space seamlessly intertwines with digital content, and where the language of electronic connections tie in with that of physical connections. We are consequently moving towards a different form of “habitats”, where architecture is not merely inhabited, but becomes technologically integrated, interactive and evolutionary. If computers were once the size of buildings, buildings are now becoming computers, both in a performative sense, on I/O Communication protocols, and in a programmable sense, at material molecule nanoscale; even becoming operational thanks to self-learning genetic algorithms. The key, thus, to 21st century challenges generated by global urbanization, economic instability and particularly the increasing awareness related to the environmental crisis will be the development of high efficient “products’ with increasing levels of functionality. Architecture following every stage of life will have to address and respond to both challenges and advancements. Our buildings and cities will need new interfaces to communicate with the environment and embedded systems of performance that do not rely on existing urba infrastructures. Active and bio-materials will play a critical role in this development, forcing architects to get free from mechanical actuators or computing devices and integrate into their designs the inherited functions that “smart materials” present on a molecular scale.
view Syllabus & FacultyAgro Char
The AGROCHAR project introduces a revolutionary architectural system that combines sustainability, versatility, and carbon capture. By harnessing the power of biochar, an agricultural waste product with carbon-negative properties, AGROCHAR minimizes environmental impact while contributing to decarbonization efforts. The system’s topological interlocking assembly method, supported by post- tensioning techniques, redefines traditional structural configurations, enabling efficient and … Read more
BLOCK HOUSE
BREATHING CARBON
A SYSTEM FOR URBAN DECARBONIZATION Breathing Carbon emerges as a response to the pressing need for sustainable urban infrastructure that addresses climate change and promotes ecological resilience. By integrating biochar, a carbon-rich material derived from biomass waste, into the concrete mixture, we aim to harness its carbon sequestration properties, thus contributing to global efforts in … Read more
FROM WASTE TO TAP
REIMAGINING WATER TREATMENT INFRASTRUCTURE THROUGH BIO-BASED SOLUTIONS PROJECT OVERVIEW WATER STRESS Due to the climate change, inefficient irrigation systems for agriculture, population growth and inefficient water infrastructure, the water stress in the world is increasing. But we question ourselves if water is really a scarce resource or is it just the issue of how the … Read more
Re-clay(m)
The old builds the new Manifest Can we transform construction waste? Can brick waste be a potential upcycled material in an structurally optimized system? Two main factors, the huge amount of CDW and the importance of brick production in Spain, gives us the decision to select our material, the brick waste. We attempt to propose optimized solutions … Read more
Form Follows Availability
The construction industry is the number one consumer of global raw materials while being one of the biggest producers of waste in the European Union.In this Research, we aim to explore the possibilities of secondary waste wood (Pallets) based on the notion of discreteness and develop a “Programmable Matter System”.These discrete building blocks can be … Read more