Profile

I was born in Milan, but the city that influenced me the most with its architectural diversity was Genoa: that’s where I grew up and went to university. My fascination for architecture took root in this city between the mountains and the sea, with its hidden gardens and courtyards and its narrow alleyways lined with high buildings and patrician houses.

After completing my architecture degree, I worked on building-construction projects as a freelance architect at various architectural firms in Berlin (including Volker Staab), Munich and Leipzig. In 2000 I moved to Leipzig – which has become my adopted home. As a self-employed architect, I have worked on the renovation of buildings, participated in international competitions and taught at the Leipzig University of Applied Sciences (HTWK Leipzig).

I co-founded the Leipzig Architects’ Network L21 in 2000 during the crisis in the construction industry, which was particularly severe in eastern Germany. This initiative dealt with the issue of urban shrinkage (or shrinking cities) and laid the groundwork for the city’s Wächterhäuser (“guarded houses”).

I was invited to represent L21 at the international exhibition Urban Regeneration in Genoa in 2004 and the exhibition Shrinking cities-Schrumpfende Städte in Leipzig/Halle in 2005.

In 2005 I initiated the exhibition Il Fascino del Disordine Realtà, Utopia e Progetto a Sampierdarena. (2007 Magazzini del Sale/ Genua) The Charm of Disorder: Reality, Utopia and Perspectives for Sampierdarena/Genoa Urban and architectural disorder as a resource, as a unique tool for social reparation. Disorder as a quality, as a source of beauty.

In 2006 I spent a year in Cambridge, Massachusetts. During this period, I served as a visiting critic at the Rhode Island School of Design, as well as the Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) in Cambridge.

How we live has an effect on our quality of life. In 2012 I initiated and curated the design exhibition Ü60 – Design für Ältere/ Over 60 – Design for Older People.If good and beautiful product design is important for our everyday lives, then it should be sustainable!

From 2015 to 2018 I was the curator responsible for the first annual upcycling fair and exhibition Echt Alt/Original Old at the Kunstkraftwerk Leipzig.

Since 2018 I have been on the board of the SYN-Stiftung in Halle (Saale). This foundation was established in 2009 for supporting exemplary cultural and educational projects at the intersection of art, design and science.

2019

Jury participation for the SYN Award und Fraunhofer Material Preis –
Jury participation for the International Upcycle Art & Design competition Gwanggmyeong Upcycleartcenter

2021-2022

Collaboration with Halle 14 for the Project The Future of the Cities not for granted

As a freelance architect, I collaborate with graphic artists, designers, landscape planners, civil engineers and urban designers on interdisciplinary teams for the planning of renovation and construction projects.

What’s important to me…

Architecture as a complex “stage design”. Various disciplines come into play in the design process: art, design, sociology and landscape planning. The big challenge and most important aim is to bring all elements into harmony with each other and the environment.

The focus should be on the REinterpretation of architecture, not solely on its REconstruction. And moreover: placing the old beside the new can lead to interesting, unexpected solutions. The use of locally sourced building materials and traditional craftsmanship is very important to me. These resources should be used in combination with new, sustainable technologies.

Interior and exterior spaces form an equilibrium. We spend most of our time indoors. This is why the design of interior lighting, surfaces, spatial situations and furnishings is just as important as the design of the building’s exterior.

No one wants to grow old alone. One of the greatest challenges facing architects today is how to develop new urban housing models for an ageing society.

…and architecture should also be beautiful. An urban landscape should open up new perspectives, offer interesting details, be surprising and trigger curiosity. The use of cheap materials and repetitive building types impoverishes not only the city, but also the people who live there. Everyone has a right to beauty.