During the last decade, in the light of climate change, architecture has oscillated between a universal approach which relies on technology and thermodynamics, and a regional perspective based on vernacular culture. The universal approach responds through abstract systemization, off-the-shelf industrial components, and a physiological understanding of human comfort, while the regional perspective relies on historical architectural types, artisanal technologies, and an experiential outlook which remits to the sensorial. Even though these two modes of thinking are opposite, it is necessary to integrate them. This opposition offers a fertile middle-ground that allows us to consider local particularities without overlooking global discussions. It is possible to embrace local idiosyncrasies, vernacular knowledge, and the pleasure of inhabitation without renouncing industrial systematization.

In response to this dichotomy, the studio will design a productive commune for one hundred inhabitants in Madrid, a fast-growing European city with a mild Mediterranean climate. The objective is to design a passive low-energy building (50.000 sq ft) with an approach that acknowledges that architecture is both a technical and cultural endeavor. Students will work on the connections that exist between climate, architecture, and the inhabitation patterns unfolded by its dwellers. The studio explores not only healthy and comfortable places, but also the pleasure of inhabiting them. Faced with a predominantly quantitative approach where the amount of space is what takes precedence over its quality, the studio will search for those attributes that improve living conditions. In this context, local climatic types provide a robust toolbox that offer spatial and material strategies that successfully integrate architecture, climate, and inhabitation patterns. Students will also consider architecture’s material ecology–material sourcing, processing, and the logistics connected to the geology and industry of the region.

The studio will learn from the rich Mediterranean cultural and architectural heritage that offers not only notable buildings such as the Alhambra, but remarkable buildings that interweave climate, space, and material to offer delightful living environments.

Note regarding the Fall 2025 GSD academic calendar: The first day of classes, Tuesday, September 2nd, is held as a MONDAY schedule at the GSD. Courses that meet only on Tuesdays will meet for the first time on September 9th. Courses meet regularly otherwise. Please refer to the GSD academic calendar for additional details.