Departement Architektur, ETH Zürich

At the end of June, the UIA World Congress of Architects 2026 takes place in Barcelona. Many members and current or recent guests of D-ARCH are participating.

Among them are Professors Roger Boltshauser, Arno Brandlhuber, Jan de Vylder, Elli Mosayebi, Anna Puigjaner, Philip Ursprung, as well as the offices Brandlhuber+, Bruther, Atelier Bow-Wow, Parabase, and TEN.

Collage of student competition (Photo: UIA)

Congratulations to Professor Tom Avermaete who received an ERC Advanced Grant from the European Research Council.

In his ERC project, he and his team investigate how collective institutions between 1890 and 1990 in Sweden, France, and Switzerland jointly planned, built, and managed housing, cultural centers, and other public facilities.

Read the article in the D-ARCH Magazine: arch.ethz.ch

Photo: Alessandro Della Bella

The students in the studio of ETH Professor Francisco Cifuentes Utrero have designed projects for the cultural foundation Origen in Switzerland.

An exhibition in Riom features the works of the students who used local materials such as timber, stone, earth, and straw to design new cultural spaces for the village.

Working across scales, from the landscape to the building detail, the students explored how architecture can contribute to the future of alpine communities in transition.

Exhibition of student projects
Until 22 August 2026
Sängersaal, Riom
Origen and Studio Cifuentes

Photos: Willem Olenski

Master's Thesis "Metamorphose einer Gartenstadt" by Laura Kölliker, Autumn Semester 2025, supervised by the chair of Professor Elli Mosayebi, ETH Wohnforum, BUK, Severin Kuhn

Check out the Works website featuring selected Master's Theses: works.arch.ethz.ch

In his doctoral thesis, Matthias Brenner examined, using two case studies, how building components can be reproduced with the help of digital fabrication. In this way, buildings from the high-tech era can be renovated in a material‑efficient manner.

The interdisciplinary research links three departments at ETH Zurich to tackle this complex task: the Chair of Construction Heritage and Preservation of Silke Langenberg at D-ARCH, the Advanced Manufacturing Lab at D‑MAVT, and the Chair of Steel and Composite Structures of Andreas Taras at D‑BAUG.

Read the article in the D-ARCH Magazine: arch.ethz.ch

Photos: Matthias Brenner, Thomas Denoréaz

Philipp Urech from ETH Zurich/USI and Susann Ahn from TUW won the Tulane Prize for Climate Change Curriculum in the Built Environment in the category of Landscape Architecture.

As rivers become frontlines of climate adaptation, their studio "Making Greenways" asks how urban waterways can be restored from the inside out.

"The studio treats precision modeling as a design instrument beyond mere visual representation to reimagine flood-resilient, biodiverse, and publicly accessible urban rivers", the jury writes.

Read the blog post on the website of the NSL: https://www.nsl.ethz.ch/philipp-urech-und-susann-ahn-gewinnen-den-tulane-prize-for-climate-change-curriculum-in-the-built-environment-kategorie-landscape-architecture/

D-ARCH is hiring: The Institute of Design and Architecture IEA is looking for two Professors of Civic Architecture.

The closing date for applications is 31 August 2026. Apply now online:
https://ethz.ch/en/the-eth-zurich/working-teaching-and-research/faculty/faculty-affairs/ausgeschriebene-professuren/architektur-und-bauwissenschaften/Prof_Civic_Arch.html

The rock avalanche in 2025 transformed the entire landscape of the village of Blatten. ETH Professor Martina Voser has been working with landscape architecture students to develop visions for the future of the Lötschental.

In this interview, she talks about courage, change, and the sense of unease she felt among the rubble. Read the article in the ETH News: arch.ethz.ch

The ten visions were created by students of the Master in Landscape Architecture under the guidance of Gerda Söckel, Dylan Torry, Martin Zwahlen, Dennis Häusler, and Martina Voser.

Photos: Colin Wiebking, Professorship Voser

Zurich is growing – but does the city need new high-rise buildings? Not necessarily, says ETH Zurich urban history professor Tom Avermaete.

His joint research project with professor of architecture Jonathan Sergison (USI) shows that mid-rise buildings and targeted densification can absorb the city’s growth.

“Learn from history and demolish as few buildings as possible”: Read the interview in the ETH News: arch.ethz.ch
Read the interview in the ETH News: https://ethz.ch/en/news-and-events/eth-news/news/2026/06/learn-from-history-and-demolish-as-few-buildings-as-possible.html

The exhibition "Zurich: Dialogues on Densification" at ZAZ Bellerive runs until 28 June 2026. On display are the main findings of the study alongside a large architectural model illustrating Zurich's densification potential. zaz-bellerive.ch

The research findings are based on a collaboration between ETH Zurich (Tom Avermaete), the gta Archive (Irina Davidovici), and Accademia di architettura di Mendrisio, Università della Svizzera italiana (USI) (Jonathan Sergison), supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation. Collaborators in the project are Dr. Sanna Kattenbeck, Dr. Giulia Scotto, Tobias Quezado Deckker and Miriam Stierle.

Images: Tobias Quezado Deckker; Timon Wenger, Thomas Hussel, Juliet Haller (Baugeschichtliches Archiv)

Impressions from the D-ARCH Research Day this week, which brought together researchers from across the department for discussions and workshops.

With contributions from Wen-Shan Cui, Matthias Brenner, Alice Keller, Wulf Böer, Fabio Gramazio, Jana Hartmann, Silke Langenberg, and many others.

Photos: Ewa Maciejewski