The Master in Advanced Ecological Buildings and Biocities (MAEBB) postgraduate program is an 11-month immersive academic program focused on learning how to design and build a new generation of buildings and cities to respond to the planet’s emerging climate challenges. The program is carried out in Valldaura Labs, in Barcelona, a 135 He property located in the Collserola forest. Here, students will live and work surrounded by nature while using the most advanced technologies and design techniques in the pursuit of what is also IAAC’s long term initiative, to create self-sufficient and ecological environments.
The Design + Fabrication course instructs and engages students in the design and discovery of novel fabrication strategies through the methodological integration of matter, processes and techniques.
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The Art of Balance: Prototyping a Tensegrity Stool For our latest project at Valldaura, we set out to design and build a stool that defies convention. The result? A tensegrity stool that creates the captivating illusion of a floating seat. What is Tensegrity? Tensegrity—short for tensile integrity—is a structural principle that relies on a balance … Read more
IntroductionAs part of the IAAC MAEBB academic course, we have participated in the Furnish Kids 2.0 program. The program aims to improve public space through design interventions of tactical architecture. This year’s edition, hosted in the creative hubs of Barcelona and Milan, and co-funded by the European Union, concentrated on the ever-changing area of Plaça … Read more
In designing and fabricating the fountain arrangement of the Open Nature project, we explored various prototypes. First, we built a small waterway in the garden space at Valldaura Labs to brainstorm how to capture the water in an elegant way. This helped us understand basic grading methods to let the water drain appropriately. Next, we … Read more
The project ‘[Wood]le’ – a ‘Wooden Noodle’ explores the idea of steam-bending tree logs to create a self-stable structure. The Woodle assumes the function of a seating area as it rests on the ground at one end and folds up to become an element that frames the valley of Font Del Gos on the other. … Read more
INTRODUCTION The Design and Fabrication course’s main objective is to orient us towards learning and gaining experience in the use of tools and machines in relation to fabrication. Through designing, manufacturing and prototyping the models we were able to gain hands-on experience on how to fabricate and construct our projects. Valldaura Green FabLab provided us … Read more
As IAAC’s Valldaura Labs and Master in Advanced Ecological Buildings & Biocities (MAEBB) class of 2022/23, we have been given the challenge of working on the activation of a public space that happens to be a transitory space between the city of Barcelona and the regional park of Collserola, specifically honouring the site of Font … Read more
