The Mid-Term Review

Our Bachelor in Architecture students have recently had mid-term reviews of the projects they are developing in the Design Studio classes. In this intense session, students, professors (Guzmán de Yarza, Fernando Pino, Fernando Rodríguez, Romina Canna, Izaskun Chinchilla, Danelle Briscoe, Pablo Oriol and Lina Toro) and guest critics (Elena Cardiel, Jesús Donaire, Daniel Esguevilla, Nerea Feliz, Danko Linder, Juan Luis de las Rivas, Laura Martínez de Guereñu, Paula Montoya, Fernando Sánchez Arroyo, Maya Saravia and Juan Tur‐Mcglone) held a conversation regarding the development of their projects. The aim is that students will implement that feedback in their final projects.

What is Design Studio at IE University?

The Design Studio classes are a time in which the students get to apply the skills and competencies they are learning into real and physical projects. This is crucial in the development of the students and really fosters and nurtures their creative and innovative spirit, as well as allowing them to hone the important attributes that they are learning at their time at IE. The Design Studio classes run throughout the course, and the progress that the students are making.

These courses are presented from 2^nd year up until their 5^th and final year, boasting a continuous mindset of creativity and ingenuity which grows each year as the knowledge on which they can draw runs deeper. As the course progresses over the years so too does the design studio topics, growing more complex as more and more aspects are included from the other modules of the degree.

The project of the current 5^th years was on the topic of Architecture and Tourism, and will be based in Mallorca which is a vibrant hub for tourists from all parts of the world.

The project is centered in the Playa de Palma area, and is to see an area of 1450 hectares refurbished for both tourist and residential purposes. It is supposed to be an area of mixed experiences, combining culture, landscape, wellness, sports, shopping and gastronomy in an area where tourists and residents can coexist.  There is an urgent need also to connect the pine forest in the back of the current urban area, to the beach at the front, in order to promote tourists to venture beyond the beach and experience more of the area which will aid in the regeneration and refurbishment of the Torrent de Jueus area.

Poster of the 5th year final project brief

Students will work together with Hevia, Velasco and Golomb Architects, a local office who have developed specific plans for this area. They will provide their conclusions, data, concepts and some design intentions, allowing students to offer many new options in a short period of time. IE will also be collaborating with Colegio Oficial de Arquitectos de las Islas Baleares and Demarcación de Mallorca. The team working on this project will aslo be comprised of IE professors Lina Toro, Fernando Rodriguez, Rafael Iñiguez de Onzoño, Mónica García, Laura Martínez de Guereñu, David Goodman.