Josemaria de Churtichaga Is Internationally Renowned Architect and Educator; Was Inaugural Associate Dean of the School of Architecture at IE University in Spain

Coral Gables, Fla. (June 22, 2015) – Award-winning architect and noted educator Josemaria de Churtichaga is the newest member of the faculty at the University of Miami School of Architecture. Beginning August 15, de Churtichaga will take over leadership of the Master of Architecture program at UMSoA.

“Josemaria combines a dedication to timeless disciplinary foundations with a curiosity for the currents that are reshaping the field,” said Rodolphe el-Khoury, Dean of UMSoA. “This double dedication perfectly aligns with our ambitions, as we expand our reach from the defining core commitments that made UMSoA’s international reputation, toward new challenges and opportunities brought by emerging technology and environmental priorities.”

Before joining the full-time faculty at UMSoA, de Churtichaga was Associate Dean and Director of Undergraduate Studies at IE School of Architecture in Madrid where he initiated innovative programs that have gained attention and praise from the international design community. He held the Frank Gehry International Visiting Chair at the University of Toronto from 2014 to 2015, as well as other positions at leading institutions in the United States and abroad, including Escuela Tecnica Superior de Arquitectura in Madrid, and the IE Business School, ranked number one in the world by Financial Times in 2015. At the IE Business School, he has was the Director of the intensive Design Thinking LAUNCH (Leadership, Awareness, Understanding, Networking, Communication and Humanities) Program in their International MBA Program.

Both his Bachelor and Master degrees are from the Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura de Madrid (ETSAM), where he also completed the coursework for a Ph.D. His doctoral research is on the innovative use of materials, structural systems, and construction techniques; it is applied in his creative practice at a variety of scales, ranging from residential projects to public buildings and spaces.

CHURTICHAGA + QUADRA-SALCEDO architects, the Madrid-based firm he co-founded with his wife Cayetana de la Quadra-Salcedo, has gained international recognition for landmark projects such as Cinema Center Matadero, Madrid (selected to represent Spain at La Biennale di Venezia 2015, Building of the Year by ArchDaily and First Prize, A+ Architecture Prize by Architizer in 2012), Almazan Main Square, Almazan (Second Prize, A+ Architecture Prize by Architizer in 2014 and 2012 Public Space European Award), and Hub Madrid coworking spaces, which was the second runner up on INC Magazine's 2011 list of the World's Coolest Offices.

el-Khoury believes that de Churtichaga’s international background and his effectiveness in grounding academic research in creative professional practice will be a perfect fit for UMSoA. “Architecture cannot be learned in a vacuum; in a literal sense, the world is our classroom, and Josemaria has a voracious curiosity and a deep appreciation for the real, messy and diverse circumstances that are shaping cities around the world.”

Miami’s messy vitality has evidently gripped de Churtichaga: “I am extremely honored to be part of both the University of Miami and its School of Architecture, and especially excited at this particular moment about Miami as a ‘project,’” de Churtichaga said. “I am convinced that Miami is the next city, the next place, the American ‘next.’ And this presents momentous possibilities for the University and UMSoA.”

~ www.miami.edu/news ~

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