Lorena del Rio

Assistant Professor

Lorena del Río is co-founder of RICA* STUDIO, based in New York and Madrid, an architectural practice and a platform for design investigation operating across many scales, reflecting on the redefinition of flexibility and aiming to improve life condition through architecture.

Del Río’s academic research addresses an interdisciplinary approach to design where architecture, art and material research meet to investigate architecture’s psychological affect and its capacity to promote emotional well-being.

Del Río is an architect educated at Polytechnic University of Madrid, ETSAM (Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura de Madrid), where she graduated in 2008 and where she is also developing her PhD. Prior to founding RICA* STUDIO together with Iñaqui Carnicero she was a senior architect at Selgascano office, based in Madrid, collaborating in projects such as El Batel Auditorium in Cartagena, Plasencia Auditorium and the Factory Youth Center in Merida.

Her profesional work has been recognized with several awards in international competitions; recently in the competition to design new sport facilities at Dalseong, Korea, Europan 11 San Bartolome, Spain,  Europan 12 Kagran, Vienna and the competition to design a Primary School, Elementary School And Leisure Center in Pleyel, Paris.  She has been part of the design team of the awarded Spanish Pavilion for the 2016 Venice Architecture Biennale. Her work has been widely published in international journals such as GA, Bauwelt, Arquitectura Viva, Detail and AIT Magazine.

Del Río has taught at Cornell University as a Visiting Assistant Professor for four years and California College of the Arts where she also was the co-director of the BuildLab.

View Lorena Del Rio's full CV here.

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