WITH 90+ CATEGORIES AND 300+ JURORS, THE ARCHITIZER A+AWARDS IS THE WORLD’S DEFINITIVE ARCHITECTURAL AWARDS PROGRAM. IN THE WEEKS LEADING UP TO THE EXTENDED DEADLINE, JANUARY 30, 2015, WE ARE PUBLISHING Q&AS WITH 2014 A+AWARD WINNERS. TO SEE A FULL LIST OF CATEGORIES AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THE A+AWARDS, VISIT AWARDS.ARCHITIZER.COM.
Terreform ONE won the 2014 Jury Award for the Architecture+Communication category with Bio City World Map of 11 Billion.
Your name: Maria Aiolova
Firm name: Terreform ONE
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Education: M. Arch in Urban Design, Harvard GSD
© Terreform ONE
Bio City World Map of 11 Billion
When did you decide that you wanted to be an architect?
I was in art school and I realized that I really need an outside challenge and a problem to solve.
First architecture/design job:
I worked on designing what was I believe the first bike lanes in the U.S. in Cambridge, Mass. This was in the early nineties, and it was an uphill battle only possible in the “Republic of Cambridge.”
Who is your design hero and/or what is your favorite building?
Louis Kahn, his buildings are simply timeless.
What do you find exciting about architecture and design right now?
I was just at the first Bio Fabricate conference in New York. I believe we will be growing buildings in the future, using naturally occurring micro-organisms.
© Terreform ONE
Smart City Streets and Vertical Farms, by Terreform ONE
Tell us something that people might not know about your submission:
Population density was represented in two different forms of bioluminescent E.coli under UV light. Bacterial shapes grew to reveal variant patterns of biological transformation in urban regions. It was amazing.
Which jurors (from the year you won or this year) do you find most compelling and why?
I have a soft spot for Paula Antonelli. I have had some of the most compelling conversation her R&D Salons at MoMA.
Among your fellow A+Award winners, what is your favorite?
I liked the Tricycle House. It was an ingenious way to deal with housing in China where private ownership of land does not exist.
© People’s Architecture Office
Tricycle Houseby People’s Architecture Office
Other than your computer (or phone), what is your most important tool?
My notebooks. I have a pile at home and I look through them to revisit ideas.
Outside of architecture, where do you look for inspiration?
Visual art. The last Chris Ofili show at the New Museum is astonishing.
© Terreform ONE
E-waste Bot by Terreform ONE
Who would be your dream client, and why?
The environment