The MAA is a visionary master program with an innovative and open structure, mixing diverse disciplines, shaping professionals capable of producing theoretical & practical solutions towards responsive cities, architecture & technology.


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THE MANUFACTURED VERNACULAR 

Image of comparison between a vernacular structure and a modern structure

Turning time-tested vernacular intelligence into scalable, multi-hazard self sufficient building INTRODUCTION See this image above? yes, its comparison between two structures that survived a 6.8 rector scale earthquake in year 2005. The ironic part is , that these vernacular structures hold the carbon friendly intelligence responding towards climate adaptation and structural resistance against earthquakes, yet … Read more

Digital Fabrication Library

In today’s architectural landscape, digital fabrication has significantly expanded the way we design and construct building elements—offering unprecedented accuracy, efficiency, and formal freedom. Techniques such as laser cutting, CNC milling, 3D printing, and robotic manufacturing each bring distinct advantages in terms of material behavior, geometric complexity, and performance potential. RE:CELL Concept The Re:Cell is a … Read more

Morphologies of Making: Four Experiments in Digital Craft

Our digital fabrication journey unfolds through four experiments that explore how material, geometry, and technology negotiate form. Each project challenges a different fabrication technique: laser cutting, CNC milling, 3D printing, and robotic manufacturing, while asking a deeper question: How does digital logic reshape the language of craft? Laser Cutting Tessellated Lightfield This project explores the … Read more

Tectonics of Digital Craft

Digital fabrication enables designers to explore geometries that go beyond traditional construction constraints. The exercise focuses on translating complex geometries into constructible systems that integrate material behaviour, joinery logic, and mass customisation. Each technique allows experimentation with unique fabrication constraints, informing the evolution of the vertical element design. The outputs serve as material and geometric … Read more

Digital Fabrication

THE W-E SERIES WALL-E 3D PRINTING DESIGN INSPIRATION OBJECTIVE To create a modular vertical element that explores the capabilities of 3D printing and is simultaneously architecturally attractive, is structurally strong whilst using minimal material. DESIGN OPTIONS FINAL DESIGN CONCEPT By blending elements from previous prototypes, the final piece combines 2D and 3D forms to exploit … Read more

FACADE PROTOTYPING

Vertical elements shape how we experience architecture-defining boundaries, filtering light, and giving character to both interiors and facades. In this exercise, we explored their potential through hands-on digital fabrication, rotating between 3D printing, laser cutting, CNC milling, and robotic manufacturing. Working within a fixed wooden framework, each technique challenged us to rethink material behavior, structural … Read more

TriAxial Dynamics

3D Printing | Kinetic Facade | CONCEPT | The project draws its primary inspiration from the dynamic, sun-responsive mashrabiya system of the Al Bahr Towers in Abu Dhabi. What captivated me was the sharp visual contrast between conventional, static façade geometries often rectilinear or triangulated and the refined kinetic intelligence embedded in these triangular adaptive … Read more

Bio-Receptive | Interfaces

Bio-Receptive Interfaces is a performative multi-material clay-based system for indoor environments, integrating hydrogel vascularity to host an ecosystem of cryptogams and vascular plants. Fusing biological intelligence with embedded sensors and AI, it sustains a prolonged hydration cycle, purifies air, sequesters carbon, and reintroduces ecological presence into synthetic indoor worlds—transforming sealed spaces into living, responsive, multi-species … Read more

THE TERRACOTTA LUNG – Breathing comfort through clay.

Introduction This project explores a double landscape approach, bridging a student accommodation in the city with an ecological extraction site in the Collserola foothills. It establishes a material and climatic dialogue between the two contexts: one as a site of inhabitation, the other as a site of making. At its core is a breathing terracotta … Read more

KINXA | The future built with tradition

Vernacular architecture has steadily lost relevance in contemporary practice. Industrialized construction methods, aesthetic shifts, and the pursuit of perceived reliability in materials like concrete and steel have overshadowed traditional techniques. However, these modern materials often come at a high environmental cost. Among the overlooked methods is quincha, a construction technique common in Latin America. It … Read more

Low CO2 Social Housing 

Project by Saad Khan , Sai Mohan Satwik and Baran Koc INTRODUCTION Our group was assigned to study the TMDC building, focusing on its material composition, spatial qualities, and potential for on-site material reuse. The goal is to explore how the existing structure can become a source for recycled construction materials, which we would then … Read more

Contexept

Contexept is a design-to-fabrication workflow that uses AI to generate context-aware façade designs and turn them into 3D-printable architectural modules. By combining semantic keyword clustering, image generation, and robotic clay printing, the system transforms abstract ideas into buildable, site-sensitive forms. It bridges digital creativity with physical construction, making AI a meaningful collaborator in architecture. Architecture … Read more

Rooted Eco-Scapes

An Exploration of Root Architecture and Material Study | TERM-2 EFFECTS OF EROSION CAUSES OF EROSION CURRENT SOLUTIONS AND PROBLEMS: THESIS OBJECCTIVE (WHAT IS NEEDED) POTENTIAL SITES STATE OF THE ART 3 MAIN TYPOLOGIES BIOLOGICAL ( ROOT AND SOIL STUDY), STRUCTURAL (SOIL COMPOSITION AND PRINTABILITY), DESIGN (SITE AND SPECIE SPECIFIC DESIGN EXPLORATION) BIOLOGICAL TYPOLOTY – … Read more

Thermocrest – Heat as a spatial design tool

This Project explores how reflective, vernacular materials—such as ceramics—can be utilized in construction to manage infrared radiation and influence microclimates. By reflecting rather than absorbing heat, these materials contribute to passive cooling, reducing urban heat island effects and enhancing thermal comfort. We analyze the physical properties of ceramics, their historical applications in traditional architecture, and … Read more