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.
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
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
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
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
Architecture is entering a moment where the boundaries between design, technology, and material production are dissolving. As cities demand faster construction, customized spaces, and environmentally intelligent solutions, traditional methods alone no longer match the pace or precision required. Digital fabrication has emerged not just as a complementary tool, but as a transformative force reshaping how … Read more
This term’s digital fabrication explorations investigated the expressive and technical potential of multiple fabrication methods laser cutting, CNC milling, robotic clay extrusion, and 3D printing. While each technique demanded a different workflow and material logic, a common thread emerged: the use of material duality to create depth, contrast, and spatial effect. By combining two materials … Read more
Introduction to Digital Fabrication Team : Sejin Park & Hasan Hirji CNC Milling During the CNC Milling process, RhinoCAM software automatically creates bridges; a necessary milling process outside of commands that one might use to manipulate material. We began with the idea of testing the frequency and depth of 2-axis bridging path movement presets to … Read more
Introduction to Digital Fabrication In contemporary architectural practice, digital fabrication has opened new possibilities for designing and producing building components with precision, efficiency, and expressive complexity. Among the most widely used methods—laser cutting, CNC milling, 3D printing, and robotic fabrication, each offers unique material, geometric, and performative potentials. For this assignment, we explore these techniques … Read more
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
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
Problem Tersa is a public company that runs a waste incineration plant in Sant Adrià del Besòs, serving much of the Barcelona metropolitan area. Over the years, local associations and residents have raised concerns that the plant may exceed emissions limits of toxic substances and caused pollution. Despite all the concerns, the investigating judge archived … Read more
Carbon Envelopes Toward Carbon-Sequestering Architectural Systems through Biochar-Concrete and Hybrid Fabrication The construction industry is one of the biggest contributors to climate change.We’re facing a paradox: The materials we use and how the construction industry works today are destroying our chance of having a future. Besides the emissions, there are other problems that we need to … Read more
a BIOCHAR BASED concrete WITH A negative carbon footprint BARA is an opportunity to build negative carbon constructionsystems by rethinking concrete and methods used in the buildingindustry. Using on-site 3D printing and casting, entire buildings can beconstructed with reduced cement while storing and capturing carbon. The focus is on optimizing and improvingstructural performance, enhancing carbon … Read more
Intro To Site Sagrada Família The Sagrada Família is one of the most iconic architectural works in the world, an emblem of Barcelona and a masterpiece of the visionary architect Antoni Gaudí.The basilica was meant as an atonement temple: a sacred offering for the sins of modernity and a monument to Catholic devotion.Gaudi embraced a … Read more
Drawing inspiration from the Central American term “colocho” meaning curl or loop, we developed a robotic printed clay column, while experimenting with non-uniform extrusions. In this seminar we explored the geometric possibilities that can be created with the incorporation of non-uniform rotations and movements in the robot while printing with clay. At the same time, … Read more
Concept The design concept for the Spiritual Retreat Center draws inspiration from Antoni Gaudí’s profound integration of nature in the Sagrada Família. Just as Gaudí translated organic forms into architectural elements, we aim to go beyond mere inspiration by incorporating natural elements—sunlight filtering through dynamic openings, water features that enhance tranquility, lush indoor gardens fostering … Read more
