Débora Mesa Molina appointed Full Professor of Architecture, Arts and Technology

The manipulation of mass and material is at the center of her career. Débora Mesa Molina studied architecture at the Polytechnic University of Madrid, where she also completed her doctorate studies. In 2003, she joined Ensamble Studio, and started her professional journey together with her partner Antón García-Abril in Madrid. After a decade of projects in Spain, the practice expanded to Boston. Their projects deal with the raw and physical aspect of architecture, but also focus on the optimized manufacturing of its parts. In 2015, the office built a house in Brookline, MA, with large, prefabricated elements, that were shipped from Spain to the USA.

In 2012, Mesa co-founded the POPlab – Prototypes of Prefabrication – at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where the architect and her team did research on construction technologies and developed an industrialized system for affordable housing. “The risk of AI and other computational technologies is that architects, who are not trained in construction, might be largely left out from the practice of architecture once creativity becomes widely available”, Mesa says. “But architects are very necessary for the built environment because we have holistic knowledge and sensibilities that we bring to the table, and we care deeply about building well.” The architect and her team wanted to scale up their solution and in 2020 co-founded the startup WoHo, short for world homes. “The aim is to make quality, economy and ecology compatible, and the construction process much more lean."

The system, the company developed, consists of four core components -slab, wall, kitchen/bathroom pod and window-, that can be customized and combined like Lego. The components are designed to cater to international standards. The balance between global compatibility and local customization is key. The idea is to "make universal unique" with large-scale projects in mind. “Through multiple iterations, we have arrived at a combination of materials that will allow us to build low to high-rise buildings with the same system.” The architects are combining low-carbon concrete with CLT, balancing active and passive energy strategies and redefining fabrication and assembly processes, to reduce the ecological footprint of their buildings throughout their lifespan. WoHo has partnered with companies like Transsolar, to achieve this.

The team built many prototypes in the lab. In 2022, the startup opened a factory of 18,000 m2 in Madrid. Currently, the architects are constructing the first building with seven units. “We developed the project ourselves because we did not find a client who was willing to take the risk of doing the first one in time”, Mesa explains. The project is their Minimum Viable Product, a term from product development. “We are confident it will get us to the next level.”

Hands-on approach

In December, Débora Mesa Molina has been appointed Full Professor of Architecture, Arts and Technology at ETH Zurich. At her chair, the hands-on approach will be important. “Making things is instrumental for architects to thinking about architecture.” To design, you need to know about many things, including construction, materials, logistics, physical laws. “It will become increasingly difficult to have a say in the future of our cities without engaging the entire lifecycle of buildings – from design, through construction to performance.”

In her studio, Débora Mesa Molina wants to focus on the integration of design and construction, to make good architecture more attainable. One of her courses could involve the design of prefabricated buildings for underserved communities. “Learning about automation and fabrication technologies is important today.” Architects can learn from other industries, regarding product quality, efficiency and minimal waste, but also in terms of administration and safety of the construction process, Mesa is convinced. “There is a lot to optimize if you compare construction with the automobile industry. We demand more from our cars than our homes.”