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.
A prototype for an interactive floor system that transforms human movement into light. The prototype consists of buttons representing movable floor tiles equipped with sensors that detect when someone steps on them.Each activated tile triggers an individual light source, creating a unique and dynamic composition that changes with every step.As people move across the surface, … Read more
Introduction to Programming and Physical Computing Seminar Leonard A. Rieck CONTEXT Ultrasonic Counter System – Explanation This system uses an ultrasonic sensor to detect when an object passes in front of it.Every time something comes closer than x cm, the Arduino counts one pass and lights up fewer red LEDs, showing how many passes … Read more
Rainwater Harvester The project proposes a regenerative infrastructure for runoff water collection, treatment, and reuse within the built environment. Conceived as a responsive system embedded in architecture, it seeks to transform excess rainwater often perceived as waste into an active resource within a closed ecological loop. During episodes of heavy rainfall, the system captures surface … Read more
Autonomous Plant is a project that explores how non-human beings can actively respond to the built environment. The central idea is that human and plant needs do not necessarily conflict; instead, they can be aligned to create mutual benefit. While humans inside buildings often prefer shade, plants seek sunlight. A dynamic façade system can satisfy … Read more
Introduction to Programming and Physical Computing Faculty: Daniel MateosFaculty Assistants: Adai Suriñach, Antoine Jaunard Conceptual Narrative Water is our most stressed urban resource, yet we spill it daily through irrigation. Sprinklers run on timers, not need; water evaporates on hot surfaces, overspray sidewalks, and runs off compacted soil. Without feedback from the ground, we irrigate … Read more
Concept What if our façades could react to sunlight? This project explores how architecture can respond to changing light conditions through simple automation. Using Arduino, it translates light intensity into movement, mimicking the adaptive behavior of a brise-soleil, and highlighting how design can respond to environmental change. REFERENCES – BRISE SOLEIL Schematics The Arduino code … Read more
VENUS is a 3D printable bio-composite made from clay and mycelium. It merges natural building materials with bio-based growth to create modular, biodegradable, and regenerative architectural components. Design The voids in the geometry enhance ventilation, critical for mycelium growth. Simultaneously, the organic content in the bricks regulates mycelium-colonized surfaces, particularly in shaded and moist environments. … Read more
Abstract Our project, addresses the need for Productive Justice for Self-Sufficiency in Mesquita, a municipality in Rio de Janeiro marked by socio-economic challenges such as food insecurity, water scarcity, infrastructure deficiencies, and a strong dependence on government subsidies. Our strategy transforms residual urban spaces-abandoned plots, unused corners, canal edges-into a Productive Web of interconnected hubs … Read more
So, how can material innovation bridge the gap between reducing energy use in buildings and designing circular insulation systems for carbon-conscious retrofits?
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
SecondMatter upcycles 85% construction and demolition waste into low-impact building units using a hybrid ramming-jamming technique. With 9 MPa strength and 7% lower carbon emissions, it forms walls, panels, and columns. Integrated into municipal waste systems, its compaction method adapts to unpredictable debris, turning urban waste into resilient, structural architecture within existing material cycles. What if … Read more
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
Self Sufficient Buildings The project investigates esparto grass as a natural humidity moderator within urban student housing. By analyzing its hygroscopic response and recording relative humidity variations, a passive air filtration system is developed. Anchored in a double landscape strategy, the design links material cultivation, extraction, and environmental performance across urban and ecological contexts. Carrer de … Read more
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
Raw | Refined | Revolutionary Rinova aims to look at something often thrown away, “agricultural waste,” and see the future of construction. With our planet facing so many challenges, and traditional construction methods often having a major impact, we are excited to introduce a fresh, sustainable approach.We’re taking rice husk and transforming it into incredible, … Read more
