Swimming pools present a unique architectural condition in which users experience space through movement, immersion, and an upward-oriented field of vision. Despite this, the roof is often treated primarily as a technical necessity rather than as an architectural element capable of shaping spatial experience.

This graduation project explores how the roof can function as the primary organizing element in swimming pool architecture. The project proposes a new public swimming pool in Milan, Italy, that redefines it as an active part of the surrounding urban fabric.

Rather than developing the building from its plan, the design is led by the roof. Its geometry organizes circulation, structures the program, defines spatial hierarchy, controls daylight, and accommodates the environmental systems required for a swimming facility. At the same time, the roof establishes a strong architectural identity, connecting the swimmer's experience with the building's presence in the city.

By positioning the roof as the starting point of the design process, the project demonstrates how a single architectural element can operate at the urban, architectural, experiential, and technical scales simultaneously. The proposal argues for an alternative approach to swimming pool architecture in which the roof becomes not only an enclosure, but the principal organizer of space and user experience.
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This graduation project investigates how architectural flow can reconnect the opera house with the city. Situated on the site of Teatro alla Scala in Milan, the project understands opera not only as a performance, but as a civic and temporal journey. Historically, the opera house was a place of encounter, visibility and collective presence. Today, this role is often reduced to the evening performance, while opera and ballet receive less attention within contemporary everyday life.

The proposal reimagines the opera and ballet house as an active civic actor: a building that supports public life before, around and beyond the performance. This is necessary to place opera and ballet back within contemporary society, not by weakening their rituals, but by making them more visible, accessible and meaningful in daily urban life. Spaces for arrival, waiting, learning, observing and gathering extend the institution’s social role into the rhythm of the city.

Strongly situated in the Milanese context, the project translates the city’s restrained refinement, layered and rich interiors and palazzo-like sequences into a contemporary cultural building. Through curated flows through foyers, voids and dramaturgical public routes, the building gradually guides people from the city toward the performance moment. ... Read more

The growth of e-commerce has increased pressure on urban logistics systems and parcel carriers, resulting in congestion, emissions, and growing demands for last-mile delivery infrastructure. This master thesis explores how contemporary major railway stations, such as a reimagined Milano Centrale, can contribute to sustainable urban freight networks by combining passenger transport and logistics within a single architectural intervention.

Using Milano Centrale as a case study, the project reimagines the station as a hybrid passenger and parcel hub within a car free Milan in 2050. Railway platforms are relocated underground, creating a public urban plaza at ground level, while a new elevated structure accommodates parcel handling and distribution. Goods arriving by rail are transferred to carbon-neutral (MEV) delivery vehicles for last-mile distribution throughout the city.

By integrating logistics infrastructure into one of Italy’s most important transportation nodes, the project proposes a new station typology that combines mobility, logistics, and public space. Last Mile Milano demonstrates how railway stations can play an active role in creating more efficient, sustainable, and car free cities.
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Libraries have historically been designed around a simple challenge: the storage and preservation of knowledge. Today, however, the digitisation of information, the rise of the internet and, more recently, the public availability of AI have fundamentally transformed the way we access knowledge. The challenge is no longer access itself, but rather the ability to navigate the abundance of information available. At the same time, knowledge has become increasingly commercialised and fragmented across archives, institutions, private collections and digital platforms, often remaining inaccessible to broader public audiences. These developments raise questions about the contemporary role of the library and its relevance within the city.

This graduation project investigates how the contemporary library can be designed as a civic interface for navigating knowledge in an age of informational abundance. This project explores the library not as a repository of information, but as an active mediator between people, knowledge, institutions and the city.
The project is situated at Porta Volta in Milan, a historic gateway into the city. The proposal is composed of three architectural elements: the landscape, the vitrine and the machine. Together they support processes of knowledge exchange and knowledge production. At the core of the building is a visible archive and retrieval system that connects physical collections, digital resources and expert knowledge, making the hidden infrastructure of knowledge accessible to the public.

The project proposes the library as a double interface: between people and increasingly complex knowledge systems, and between fragmented knowledge collections and public engagement. By making the processes behind knowledge visible, the library is redefined as a civic infrastructure for navigating, interpreting and sharing knowledge. ... Read more

Villa Prada: Sculpting Time is a proposal for a new sculpture museum on the current site of the Fondazione Prada for the client Prada in Milan. The project explores how architecture can give visitors more freedom in the way they experience a collection. Rather than following a fixed route, visitors can move through the museum in different ways and create their own connections between classical and contemporary sculpture=non-linear. Inspired by the idea of a villa, the design combines galleries, terraces, and a sculpture garden into one continuous experience. Through multiple routes and visual connections, the museum becomes a place that encourages exploration, discovery, and personal interpretation. ... Read more

This report tries to lay out the base to redefine airport terminals as a civic and urban space rather than an isolated infrastructure element next to a city. By using an exercise of designing a new airport in place of Milan’s Linate Airport, it explores the possibilities of a new airport typology in which commercial and social functions are relocated to a publicly accessible landside space, transforming the airport from a closed, transactional environment into an open urban destination. Inspired by the Milanese piazzas, the landslide becomes a place of gathering for both travelers and residents, erasing the existing boundaries between airport infrastructure and Milan. The research also investigates how the development of electric aircraft, and its decrease in noise pollution, enables closer urban integration. The project is based on the principles of cultural integration, inclusivity, and spatial efficiency. ... Read more

In response to the growing emphasis on social sustainability in urban redevelopment, this thesis investigates how Dutch developers define and implement strategies concerning affected communities in the built environment. With the recent introduction of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the associated ESRS S3 standard on affected communities, developers are increasingly expected to disclose the social impacts of their projects. However, translating these abstract and highlevel regulatory principles into practice remains a challenge, particularly in the absence of sector-specific tools.

To address this gap, this research compares and integrates the ESRS S3 standard with the academic framework of Shirazi & Keivani (2018), which results in an adapted framework that combines regulatory expectations with socio-spatial indicators. Experts were interviewed to refine and validate the framework. The adapted framework is then applied to two redevelopment cases, Katendrecht (Rotterdam) and Dreven, Gaarden, Zichten (Den Haag). Through interviews with developers, the study identifies their definitions, strategies and objectives surrounding social sustainability and affected communities. These are mapped onto the adapted framework to assess where they align, diverge or extend its dimensions. Additional interviews with municipal representatives and local community actors further broaden and deepen the understanding of how social sustainability is interpreted and experienced in practice.

Findings show that developers increasingly recognize social sustainability as a multidimensional and collaborative practice, but their approaches remain strongly shaped by system-world logic, such as policy, targets, feasibility and formal participation processes. Local representatives reveal how lived experiences, identity, cultural practices and everyday routines shape the perceived impact of redevelopment, factors that are often underrepresented in formal strategies. The analysis highlights a reoccurring tension between system world requirements and lifeworld realities, underscoring the need for context sensitivity, long-term governance and continuous engagement.

The study concludes by refining the adapted framework and presenting operational tools that enable developers to translate social sustainability principles into concrete, measurable and meaningful practices, contributing to socially responsible reporting and to the creation of meaningful neighbourhoods with measurable social impact. ... Read more

JUST. MILANO stands for justice, understanding, solutions, and transparency. It reimagines the role of the courthouse in contemporary society, addressing the urgent need for judicial reform in Italy, where case backlogs and low public trust weaken the justice system. The project introduces a new typology that prioritizes mediation, transparency, and civic engagement. Rather than reinforcing the image of justice as distant and formal, the building envisions the courthouse as an open, accessible space that fosters dialogue and understanding. At the core of the design lies mediation, an informal, collaborative process facilitated beyond formal judicial spaces. By spatially integrating mediation as a key component, the project offers a more efficient and human-centered approach to justice. The courtrooms are arranged linearly in a stacked layout, creating an efficient arrangement that minimizes travel distances while ensuring flexibility, clarity, and high-level security. This organization supports the clear separation between user groups the public, private, and secure, while allowing moments of visual connection throughout the system. JUST. MILANO is more than a building: it is a spatial manifesto for judicial reform, demonstrating how architecture can actively restore trust in justice and bring the institution closer to the society it serves. ... Read more

The design of Aeroporto Fiera Milano Linate presents a new vision for what an airport can be within the context of a contemporary city. Conceived entirely from the ground up, the project breaks away from traditional airport models and introduces a building defined by openness, flexibility, and broad functionality. This building is more than an airport: a dynamic environment for cultural exchange and activity. Through its flexible structure and rich programmatic layers, it becomes a space for travel, performance, leisure, and gathering. A building that transforms to meet the changing needs of the city and its people, a satellite to Milan’s culture and an ‘Experience Machine.’ The building is designed to host all types of events, from small gatherings to large scale performances such as fashion shows, concerts or festivals. The central concourse acts as a flexible and atmospheric space, much like a festival ground. Spaces are modular, adaptable, and interconnected. Gate areas can be closed off and repurposed as pop-up shops or event rooms. Baggage systems, lockers, and service spaces are smartly integrated to support both travel and event use. The architecture enables rapid transformation depending on need, time of day, or type of user. Security is rethought as a decentralized system, with multiple smaller checkpoints that reduce stress and create a more fluid transition between zones. This approach removes the conventional hard boundary between landside and airside, enhancing the open character of the building. Developed within the Complex Projects graduation studio at TU Delft under the Bodies and Building theme, the project forms part of a wider urban vision. It connects with other large-scale building designs across Milan that aim to improve and activate the city through architecture.
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The graduation project: Simbiosi architettura natura is located in Milan. A city full of hardening, heating and polluted air. The project aims to green the city by forming a green ring around the park in which a green knowledge center is designed at the given location. Also at this location are remnants of old city walls, which are integrated and made visible again in this project.

A green oasis has been recreated sheltered from the paved and polluted city. Around this oasis are several pavilions for Feltrinelli (library), Microsoft (office & technology center) and the a museum. These pavilions each have their own space, but are connected by the garden and bridges in between.

Within this project the relationship between greenery and buildings; a symbiosis is central. For this reason, each of the buildings are transparent and use natural shapes, materials and transition zones. Thus, the user experience is enhanced by the presence of nature. Within this project, the focus on biophilic architecture is therefore strong and the design is based on prior research. This is to create an appropriate design within which architecture, greenery and archaeology come together. ... Read more

Opera faces a pressing challenge: engaging younger generations. As part of the Complex Projects Milan studio, this project envisions the historic site of Teatro alla Scala as a blank canvas, focusing on youth engagement in order to identify how opera houses can better resonate with younger audiences through design. These findings informed a reimagined program that balances traditional and experimental performance spaces.

In line with the overall concept, the institution itself is reframed as “Scala” a concise, contemporary identity designed to appeal to emerging generations and to signal an open, inclusive approach to cultural events. The project crafts a new architectural narrative, one that honours memory and ritual beneath the surface while projecting a vibrant, youth-focused future above.

The proposal transforms the former Teatro alla Scala’s site into a sequence of performance spaces that balance lost traditions with experimental performances. By conceiving the piazza as an open stage and weaving together floating and sunken venues, from the hovering Rolex Hall and sunken Amphitheatre to the transparent Rehearsal Passage, the Foyer, Performance Patio, and hidden Classical Hall, the design both honours Milan’s operatic heritage and blurs boundaries between artist and audience. Together, these spaces choreograph a journey through voids and masses, tradition and experimentation, and public and hidden, redefining youth engagement in Milan’s opera scene. ... Read more

This graduation project explores how architecture can give form to temporality through a new typology for contemporary art museums. Designed for Fondazione Prada in Milan, this Museum of Temporality questions the traditional idea of a static and permanent museum and instead proposes a cultural institution built around cycles of artistic creation, public exhibition, private exhibition and demolishing rituals. By integrating artist residencies, fashion collaborations, and city-wide event calendars, the museum becomes a spatial system for transformation in time.

The project investigates how exclusive cultural experiences can be made more public and visible while maintaining the exclusive character of the client Prada, through flexible interior as well as constructional and material strategies, playing into today's FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) character of the building users. ... Read more

This research explores the potential of architectural design to enhance ‘sustainable academic performance’ by looking beyond the traditional university design strategies, within the context of a future economics university building in the heart of Milan. The city’s unique blend of fast-paced economic and cultural dynamism and slow-paced aperitivo culture makes it a city of temporalities and flexibility. This study critiques the predominant focus in our society on either maximizing performance while disregarding mental health, or enhancing well-being to the point of overlooking productivity, highlighting a gap between the ‘hustle culture’ and the ‘wellness culture’. Supported by numerous research in environmental psychology, it proposes a design framework that integrates both performance-enhancing and well-being enhancing design strategies, aligned with the principles of the Attention Restoration Theory, to create a space that promotes ‘sustainable academic performance’ for both neurotypical and neurodivergent users in the academic context. Through literature review, case studies, surveys, geotagging and analysing everything through the lens of culture, the study proposes the redesign of the Bocconi University Via Roentgen Building, aiming to create a new typology of economics university building that promotes a healthier lifestyle. ... Read more

This thesis explores the redesign of Milan’s Central Station as a flexible, responsive, and scalable urban hub that integrates transportation with cultural experiences.

Titled “On the Move,” the project aligns with the European Union’s 2050 agenda for sustainable urban development and efficient mobility. It proposes a shift from viewing train stations as mere transit nodes to envisioning them as vibrant cultural centres that actively contribute to the city’s dynamic identity. Drawing inspiration from Milanese Futurism and the concept of “In Motu Vita” (Life is in Motion), the research explores how architectural design can strike a balance between transportational efficiency and cultural dynamism.

By utilising Milan’s historical trams as “living spaces” for cultural events, the project introduces a “Experience Depot” concept that allows culture to be continuously present throughout the city.

The year-long thesis not only challenges the traditional typology of train stations but also sets a visionary precedent for integrating cultural vitality into urban mobility hubs. Through a thoughtful spatial integration of Milanese culture, the redesigned station will adapt to the city’s evolving needs, ensuring it remains a lively and contemporary landmark for generations to come. ... Read more

Berlin, a city characterized by its diversity, creativity, and resilience, stands as a vibrant hub with a rich history, influential club culture, with a prominent global position. The city’s identity has been shaped by a series of transformative events, from its growth along the Spree in 1724 and the cities expansion with characteristic blocks in 1862, up to the significant impacts of World War II and the division imposed by the Berlin Wall in 1961. The subsequent reunification process led to redevelopment, urban planning, and the evolution of Berlin’s dynamic, multicultural identity.

Aligned with this historical narrative, the city’s spatial structure, public transportation network, and urban development have undergone continuous evolution. The Berlin railway network, dating back to 1846, has expanded and adapted to the city’s growing needs, as evidenced by the i2030 expansion plans for railways (Start - i2030, 2023).

However, the evolution of train stations, integral to the city’s transportation infrastructure, has taken a distinct turn. Once serving as waiting shelters, stations have transformed into commercial entities prioritizing profit and efficiency often at the expense of inclusivity. While the program focuses on becoming a symbolic gateway to the city, there is a growing sense of exclusion despite train stations being the daily crossroads for diverse populations.

In the spirit of Berlin’s anarchistic character, which advocates a bottom-up approach to city-making, this thesis proposes a radical departure from the conventional model of train stations. Instead of admitting to the profit-driven agenda of the state-owned railway operator, Deutsche Bahn, the thesis advocates for a user-centric architectural approach which will make it inclusive. By delving into the essential needs of Berlin’s community, passengers, and commuters, the aim is to establish a harmonious balance between profit-driven objectives and the diverse requirements of the local population.
The thesis seeks inspiration from anarchism, a philosophy advocating for the absence of top-down authority. This departure from conventional architecture involves challenging the prevailing paradigm of “hostile architecture,” marked by exclusionary designs, towards a more inclusive and versatile approach focused on liveability. Through the lens of anarchistic principles, the proposal aims to redefine the S-Bahn stations along the Berlin ring, offering a compelling vision for a more user-friendly, community-oriented, and progressive environment as prototype station.

This thesis proposes a prototype station for the current S-Bahn station at Frankfurter Allee, where the seamless integration of functionality and user experience becomes the focal point. The “Frankfurter Allee Locals Foundation”, consisting of rotating local residents, jointly owns the rentable units added to the station’s program. Its former identity as containerbahnhof has been repurposed for the rentable units at this particular station.

Some recommendations on how to design a prototype station for the S-Bahn ring in Berlin combining all flows with local identities are the outcome of the research through design. ... Read more

This thesis explores the design and conceptualization of a contemporary installation art museum in Berlin, aiming to redefine the traditional white cube experience and contribute to a healthier society. The ‘white cube’ model as we know it today has been around since the late 19th century. With its neutral, flexible and decontextualized spaces it takes away all distractions from the art. However this ‘white cube’ model and passive experience has become outdated and fails to engage visitors in a more meaningful way. It is exactly this engagement and interaction with the art and other visitors what makes the museum potentially such an important building in our future society. Especially in this digital age where people are becoming more alone and isolated it is important to have places where they can come together and connect with each other. That is why the primary objective of this project is to create spaces that foster meaningful interaction and connections, ultimately contributing to a healthier and more cohesive society. This building, focusing on social health, together with eight other buildings will form a broader strategy to improve Berlins health by integrating a health beneficiary space in to the buildings design. ... Read more

What if we welcome all things, plants and animals to the Parliament of Berlin? What would the Spree river vote for during the plenary sessions? What would be the reasoning of the brown bear? What claims would the Tiergarten and its trees make, and what future would the red fox see for itself?

The thesis addresses the dichotomy between nature and society in the legislative process through an architectural design project. The ambition of the project is to provide a personal contribution to the evolution of parliamentary buildings and to engage in a critical reflection on the future of this architectural typology. To do so, the main goal is to design a new Parliament for the city-state of Berlin by drawing inspiration from the theory of the Parliament of Things, articulated by Bruno Latour in his book “We Have Never Been Modern”. 

This project is distinct in its nature; it ventures into uncharted territory and architectural innovation without a pre-existing reference or established precedent. This design project seeks to redefine the essence of parliamentary spaces by embracing the voices of all entities, both human and non-human, within the legislative process. In exploring this topic, the central research question emerges as follows:
How can a contemporary Parliament be designed to include, besides humans, natural entities in the legislative process? ... Read more

This project is an elderly school in Berlin, which aims to help the elderly enjoy their happy life by enhancing their sense of self-achievement through knowledge sharing with other people. This elderly school floats on top of Fennpfuhl Lake in the park, and the elderly could also enjoy poetic scenery while teaching and learning. It includes age-friendly design, participatory design, and multi-sensory design, aiming to help the elderly gain a sense of self-achievement through cross-age communication. The elderly school allows people to meet and talk, using classrooms, in-between spaces, and gardens to provide formal and random learning and communication opportunities. It also improves the self-satisfaction of the elderly in different aspects. The classroom is a teaching space that provides fixed courses where the elderly can gain a sense of self-achievement when teaching and acquiring knowledge. The in-between space is a space for people to communicate and rest, where random learning opportunities can be triggered. The indoor garden is separated by exhibition shelves, where the elderly carefully maintain the plants, and they will also feel happy in this planting space. ... Read more

This thesis delves into the intricacies of designing a courthouse in Berlin, aiming to address current and future challenges within the German legal system, as well as reimagining traditional courthouse design.
In Germany, public trust in institutional organizations and the government has witnessed a considerable decline. According to a DW survey, 25% express concern about the actions of politicians and the government. The introduction of the Hartz IV law, involving cutbacks in unemployment benefits, exemplifies one of the reasons for this mistrust. Germany’s highest court recognized the insufficiency of welfare benefits (Arbeitslosengeld II), particularly for families with children. Similar governmental scandals, such as the ‘allowance affair’ in the Netherlands, have fueled citizen distrust in government and legal systems.
One contributing factor to this erosion of trust is the inaccessibility of judicial help and the legal system. Legal representation by attorneys is prohibitively expensive, averaging around 250 euros per hour ([Source](faire-integration.de)). Additionally, the current legal systems face immense pressure due to a shortage of judges and judicial staff, resulting in an alarming backlog of cases. Germany, for eight consecutive years, holds the unfortunate record of the highest number of pending cases, with 400,000 cases yet to be opened ([EEUA, European, EASO Data](source)). This backlog is a direct consequence of the understaffed judicial system.
To alleviate the strain on the existing legal system and to enhance its accessibility, affordability, and comprehensibility, a shift towards mediation emerges as a potential solution. Mediation offers significant advantages, such as being more cost-effective. According to R. Lalanne, a typical case negotiated using a mediator may cost around $6,000.00, in stark contrast to the potential cost of over $35,000.00 for litigation, assuming both mediator and attorneys bill at $250.00 per hour.
Mediation is not only cost-effective but also holds the promise of being swift, efficient, and operates in a voluntary and cooperative manner. Thus, the proposal pivots from designing a traditional courthouse to conceptualizing a ‘House of Mediation.’ By prioritizing mediation over adversarial trial settings, this innovative approach aims to make the legal process more accessible to the public.
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This thesis proposes an inner city hydrogen-powered seaplane port located in Rummelsburger Bucht, near the centre of Berlin. By using seaplanes, the airport would be a small-scaled airport with the approximate size of 50,000 square metres next to the Spree and no runways on ground would be necessary. With innovations of the hydrogen fuel, airports could be more environmentally friendly, sustainable and thus could be located at the heart of Berlin, benefiting medical passengers from rural areas and domestic travellers escaping the city for a break. ... Read more