Sana Frini

Sana Frini is a Tunisian M.Arch. in southern urban studies from the Universidade Técnica de Lisboa (2012) and M.S.c in globalization and environment from the Universidade Nova de Lisboa (2015). Her work unites theory and practice by combining academic and research backgrounds with the professional activity of Locus, a young office founded in 2020 which interests focus on global southern practices in architecture, participatory processes, and climate resilience.

Frini has been leading projects in rural housing prototypes, social housing, post-earthquake reconstruction projects, art installations, and projects for the academy. Her work has been shown at The Lisbon Architecture Triennale (2013), The Chicago Architecture Biennial (2018), and the Mexican Abierto Mexicano (2019). She has been awarded the Erasmus Fellowship (2008) the Erasmus Mundus Fellowship (2013/2015) and The Mexican National Art Creators System Grant (2017/2020).

Frini was appointed as 2021 visiting critic at Cornell AAP for the spring option studio Abundant Scarcities and the spring option seminar Visualizing climate resilience as a design tool.

Academic Research/Specialty Areas

  • Architectural design
  • Architectural history
  • Architectural practice 
  • Architectural theory
  • Film/video/sound
  • Participatory and collaborative planning
  • Social policy
  • Suburban neighborhoods
  • Visual representation
  • The Global South
  • Climate Resilience
  • Right to the City

Related News

Classes (Selected)

  • ARCH 5115: Abundant Scarcities, Building architecture within the context of the global southThe New York City vertical studios engage contemporary issues through examining urban and infrastructural issues in relation to ecological, technical, and cultural practices.
  • ARCH 4605/6605: Visualizing climate resilience as a design toolThis course addresses pertinent issues relative to the subject of Construction. The instructor(s) of the course are drawn from the permanent and visiting faculty who may either broadly or narrowly define the course's scope and content. For precise content, please see the Architecture Department webpage.

Awards, Grants, and Fellowships (Selected)

  • The Erasmus Fellowship (2008)
  • The Erasmus Mundus Fellowship (2013/2015)
  • The Mexican National Art Creators System Grant (2017/2020)

Exhibitions and Presentations (Selected)

  • A prison for 10000 prisonniers, The Lisbon Architecture Triennale (2013)
  • The wallderful, The Chicago Architecture Biennial (2018) 
  • Dichotomies of the power, The Mexican Abierto Mexicano (2019)
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