School Lecture Series: MAIO, Anna Puigjaner / EPFL Architecture
Event details
| Date | 28.04.2026 |
| Hour | 18:30 › 19:00 |
| Speaker | MAIO, Anna Puigjaner |
| Location | |
| Category | Conferences - Seminars |
| Event Language | French, English |
MAIO, ANNA PUIGJANER
Opera Aperta
Opera Aperta, this lecture by Barcelona-based architect, researcher, and MAIO co-founder Anna Puigjaner presents recent work on alternative and inclusive domestic architectures. Challenging assumed architectural “normality,” the talk argues that the discipline has produced unequal spatial regimes tied to heteronormative models of living. In response to ecological and social precarity, Opera Aperta frames architecture as a living practice of repair, care, and stewardship—extending beyond buildings to communities and ecosystems.
Anna Puigjaner (she/her) is a PhD architect and researcher, co-founder of MAIO, an architectural office based in Barcelona. Her work, linked to feminist studies, is focused on inclusive domestic architectures able to redefine former biased structures. She is currently Professor of Architecture and Care at ETH Zürich. Previously, she taught at the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation GSAPP at Columbia University, at the Royal College of Arts, London, and at the Barcelona School of Architecture ETSAB/ETSAV - UPC. Anna has presented her work widely, including the Art Institute of Chicago, the Venice Biennale, and the New York Museum of Modern Art. Her research project Kitchenless City was awarded the Wheelwright Price (2016) by the Harvard Graduate School of Design.
This lecture is part of the School Lecture Series
COMMUNITY VOL.2
Seven exemplary projects and case studies
Community is an ambivalent concept. It involves both gathering through shared customs and exclusion. Some claim that inclusive communities do not exist. Recent history shows people more often unite through exclusion than inclusion. However, communities are not sealed. Philosopher Roberto Esposito explains that community ‘is not a property or territory to defend but a void, a debt, and a gift to others’, reminding us of our otherness.
This lecture series explores the topic of community through architecture. How does architecture explore, define, or enable communities? Can architects collaborate directly with communities, bypassing institutional entities? How can design convey a collective experience? Seven emerging and established architectural figures respond to these questions through their work, which spans film, exhibitions, and communitarian buildings.
Save the dates and join us on Tuesday evenings!
Opera Aperta
Opera Aperta, this lecture by Barcelona-based architect, researcher, and MAIO co-founder Anna Puigjaner presents recent work on alternative and inclusive domestic architectures. Challenging assumed architectural “normality,” the talk argues that the discipline has produced unequal spatial regimes tied to heteronormative models of living. In response to ecological and social precarity, Opera Aperta frames architecture as a living practice of repair, care, and stewardship—extending beyond buildings to communities and ecosystems.
Anna Puigjaner (she/her) is a PhD architect and researcher, co-founder of MAIO, an architectural office based in Barcelona. Her work, linked to feminist studies, is focused on inclusive domestic architectures able to redefine former biased structures. She is currently Professor of Architecture and Care at ETH Zürich. Previously, she taught at the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation GSAPP at Columbia University, at the Royal College of Arts, London, and at the Barcelona School of Architecture ETSAB/ETSAV - UPC. Anna has presented her work widely, including the Art Institute of Chicago, the Venice Biennale, and the New York Museum of Modern Art. Her research project Kitchenless City was awarded the Wheelwright Price (2016) by the Harvard Graduate School of Design.
This lecture is part of the School Lecture Series
COMMUNITY VOL.2
Seven exemplary projects and case studies
Community is an ambivalent concept. It involves both gathering through shared customs and exclusion. Some claim that inclusive communities do not exist. Recent history shows people more often unite through exclusion than inclusion. However, communities are not sealed. Philosopher Roberto Esposito explains that community ‘is not a property or territory to defend but a void, a debt, and a gift to others’, reminding us of our otherness.
This lecture series explores the topic of community through architecture. How does architecture explore, define, or enable communities? Can architects collaborate directly with communities, bypassing institutional entities? How can design convey a collective experience? Seven emerging and established architectural figures respond to these questions through their work, which spans film, exhibitions, and communitarian buildings.
Save the dates and join us on Tuesday evenings!
Practical information
- General public
- Free