Manuel Aires Mateus

Manuel Aires Mateus was born in Lisbon in 1963 and graduated from Faculty of Architecture, University of Lisbon in 1986. He started collaborating with the architect Gonçalo Byrne in 1983 and started developing projects with his brother, Francisco, in 1988. The office Aires Mateus was then established independently by the two brothers although it was housed in Gonçalo Byrne's studio in the first years. The increasing scale of work made them establish a larger and autonomous space to fulfill the demands. Since then the scale and the number of projects have been prolific, resulting in several national and international awards. The visibility of their work has led to them holding numerous lecturer and instructor positions at several institutions. Among these are Harvard GSD, the Accademia di Architettura di Mendrisio, as well as several others in Portugal. The firm now spans two studios, both based in Lisbon, and extends to several partnerships with local studios for international work.

Aires Mateus graduated from Faculdade de Arquitectura–Universidade Técnica de Lisboa in 1986.

Classes (Selected)

  • ARCH 4101/4102 Design VIIAdvanced programs in architectural design, with options in, but not limited to, urban design, architectural technology, computational design, ecology, culture, and representation.

Awards, Grants, and Fellowships (Selected)

  • Pessoa Prize, Portugal (2017)
  • Santa Clara 1728, Wallpaper Design Award, best new or renovated hotel (2018)
  • EDP Headquarters, VIII Iberoamerican Architecture and Urbanism Biennale, awarded project, São Paulo, Brazil (2016)
  • Sines Arts Centre, Premios Enor 2006, First prize, Vigo, Spain (2006)
  • Furnas Investigation Centre, International Award Architecture in Stone, Veronafiere, Italy (2011)

Exhibitions and Presentations (Selected)

  • Field, 2018 Venice Biennale of Architecture, "Free space"; Fenda, 2016 Venice Biennale of Architecture, "Reporting from the front"; Radix, 2012 Venice Biennale of Architecture, "Common Ground"; Voids, 2010 Venice Biennale of Architecture, "People meet in architecture"
  • Ruin in Time, Chicago Architecture Biennial, "Re-writing memory" (2017)
  • Aires Mateus: Arquitectura, Centro Cultural de Belém, Lisbon, Portugal (2005)

Publications (Selected)

  • A+U 574 07:18 Aires Mateus. Tokyo: A+U Publishing Co., 2018.
  • El Croquis 154: Aires Mateus 2002-2011. Madrid: El Croquis, 2011; and El Croquis 186: Aires Mateus 2011-2016. Madrid: El Croquis, 2016
  • c3 #329 Aires Mateus. Seoul: C3 Publishing Co., 2010
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