María is Project Lead at MITdesignX, an academic program at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) dedicated to design innovation and entrepreneurship.
María graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with a Master of Science in Architecture Studies. Her individual research on machine learning, ethics, and design was recognized with the MIT Thesis Prize. During her time at MIT, she taught undergraduate and graduate design studios in the disciplines of Architecture and Design.
María is a former researcher at MIT's Self-Assembly Lab, where she worked on self-assembly and programmable material technologies for novel manufacturing, products, and construction processes. She also became a collaborator at Harvard University, developing new bioinspired materials at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering.
She is the recipient of the 2017-18 Rome Prize in Architecture from the Spanish Academy of Rome.
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In 2019 María was named one of the “Top 24 Most Innovative and Radical Female Artists in Spain” by El Mundo magazine, and in 2020, she was included in the list of “Spaniards who are Changing the World” from La Razon newspaper.
María has designed and built installations and exhibitions at galleries around the world (Boston, Chicago, Edinburgh, LA, London, Madrid, Rome, Seoul, and Venice) including the I Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism, and Venice Architecture Biennales. Her work has been featured in international publications, for which she has received various awards and scholarships. María has lectured at different institutions including Korea University, University of Plymouth, and the Architectural Association Visiting School Madrid.
Prior to MIT, she received her Master’s Degree in Architecture from the Bartlett School of Architecture (UCL) and a Master of Arts in Architecture from the University of Edinburgh.
Previously, María has worked at several renowned architecture offices including Grimshaw Architects (London) and Dominique Perrault (Paris).
Right now, María is leading design and research projects at MITdesignX, an academic program in the MIT School of Architecture and Planning dedicated to design innovation and entrepreneurship. She is also Adjunct Professor at IE University School of Architecture and Design in Madrid, receiving the 2022, 2023, and 2024 Professor for Teaching Excellence Awards. She is currently a PhD candidate in Architecture and Urbanism at ETSAM (Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura de Madrid), Universidad Politécnica de Madrid.
