Archinect - Features

M.Arch Graduate Lucas Pissetti on "Designing With Informal Settlements"

2020-07-10T08:31:00-04:00

Graduate student Lucas Pissetti poses the question, how does one "improve basic life conditions for the people in need, while preserving the qualities that are very specific to their location?"

A recent graduate from the Academy of Architecture Amsterdam, Pissetti investigates favelas in Brazil and discusses his design strategy to improve the relationship residents have within these communities, specifically in Paraisópolis, in São Paulo. Pissetti explains, "My design proposes a new strategy on designing with informal settlements, which aims to improve basic life conditions for the people in need, while preserving the qualities that are very specific to these locations." Archinect connects with Pissetti as he unpacks the ideation process of his thesis and how he feels the recent events taking place has impacted the industry and career opportunities.

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Student Works: INSITU Medellin

2012-08-27T10:00:00-04:00

INSITU is an initiative founded by Blokcad Lab and uAbureau in 2011 to implement projects that investigate the informal development of cities, its non-consolidated urban spaces and auto- construction processes. Its central objective is to explore how the ecological and the social environments of the city can be merged to create new and unforeseen landscapes. Through a series of ongoing workshops, lectures and events, the program is directed to students, professionals and communities working in art, architecture, design and its related fields.

Branner Fellowship Summary: Favela Chic

2011-02-07T14:00:08-05:00

The John K. Branner Traveling Fellowship, awarded each year to three masters of architecture students in their final year at the University of California, Berkeley, gives recipients the opportunity to travel the world for twelve months in pursuit of architectural inquiries that will later inform their theses. This fellowship represents one of the most extensive pre-thesis travel research grants awarded to master level students in the United States. The 2010 Branner Fellows, Adriana Navarro-Sertich, Eleanor Pries, and Melissa Smith have just returned from their travel and are in the midst of thesis production.