We explore architecture through processes of material experimentation, collective practices, and critical reflection.
At the intersection of design, research, and society, we investigate how building and city-making can be redefined in times of ecological and social transformation. Rather than focusing solely on final products, we emphasize the knowledge embedded in processes: how materials are sourced, re-used, and re-imagined; how collaborative ways of working can shape more inclusive futures; and how new forms of architectural thinking emerge through making.
We have curated two exhibitions that reflect this approach: Making Differently: Women Rethinking Architecture, which presented the work of ten pioneering women, and Menschliche Zeit ist eine Ressource, which translated research into tangible, hands-on experiences.
In this way, Making Matters positions itself as a platform where academic inquiry meets experimentation and public dialogue—creating space for sustainable, situated, and imaginative approaches to architecture.
Summer Semester 2025
MAKING DIFFERENTLY:
Women Rethinking Architecture
WIA – Women in Architecture 2025
Exhibition at the Technical University Berlin
The future of construction of architecture and cities needed to be radically rethought. This exhibition highlighted visions and rigorous investigations in pursuit of new materiality, aiming to gather contributions that inspired a promising future, one that addressed environmental, social and economic sustainability as well as well-being for humans and other species with whom we co-exist.
The exhibition mainly showed the work of approx. 10 pioneering women, who were paving the way for producing architecture and cities differently. The selection covered a wide range of aspects from architectural technologies to city-making processes. Alongside the possible outcomes of their investigations and experiments, the exhibition revealed the underlying thinking and rethinking that had led to novel processes that underpinned the promise of a future that was more conscious. Rather than the product the aim was to deeply enter the processes that were behind the quest for new outcomes.
Exhibition curated by: Prof. Dr. Anupama Kundoo, Li Lin, Marius Busch
Contributors: Michelle Howard, Silvia Gioberti (Guerilla Architects), Mascha Fehse, Jeanne Gang, Angelika Fitz, Claudia Mareis, Folke Köbberling, Shadi Rahbaran & Ursula Hürzele, Charlotte Uhlig (Roundabout e.V)
Team: Leon Stanislawski, Anika Gercke, Sandra Heck, Linus Krug, Hannah Cerbe
Women Rethinking Architecture
WIA – Women in Architecture 2025
Exhibition at the Technical University Berlin
The future of construction of architecture and cities needed to be radically rethought. This exhibition highlighted visions and rigorous investigations in pursuit of new materiality, aiming to gather contributions that inspired a promising future, one that addressed environmental, social and economic sustainability as well as well-being for humans and other species with whom we co-exist.
The exhibition mainly showed the work of approx. 10 pioneering women, who were paving the way for producing architecture and cities differently. The selection covered a wide range of aspects from architectural technologies to city-making processes. Alongside the possible outcomes of their investigations and experiments, the exhibition revealed the underlying thinking and rethinking that had led to novel processes that underpinned the promise of a future that was more conscious. Rather than the product the aim was to deeply enter the processes that were behind the quest for new outcomes.
Exhibition curated by: Prof. Dr. Anupama Kundoo, Li Lin, Marius Busch
Contributors: Michelle Howard, Silvia Gioberti (Guerilla Architects), Mascha Fehse, Jeanne Gang, Angelika Fitz, Claudia Mareis, Folke Köbberling, Shadi Rahbaran & Ursula Hürzele, Charlotte Uhlig (Roundabout e.V)
Team: Leon Stanislawski, Anika Gercke, Sandra Heck, Linus Krug, Hannah Cerbe
Menschliche Zeit ist eine Ressource
LNdW – Lange Nacht der Wissenschaft
Exhibition at the Technical University Berlin
As part of the Long Night of Science, we are presenting three projects that engage with sustainable building, material cycles, and the value of craft-based processes:
Trash as Treasure – Design Studio
What happens when waste becomes a building material?
In our design studio, we explore Berlin’s urban waste streams—from discarded clothing to glass—and ask: Can these materials be reused and re-imagined architecturally? The studio focuses on hands-on experimentation at a 1:1 scale, embedded within the debate on circular economy and local resource use.
Ferrocement – Material Research
Ferrocement is a building technique that combines fine wire mesh with a thin layer of cement plaster. The experimental building elements on display demonstrate the material’s potential to achieve strength and durability with comparatively little material due to its thinness. Depending on the context, this approach can provide a resource-efficient and easily producible alternative to massive building structures. The technique can—depending on the conditions—unfold ecological, social, and economic potentials, especially through its accessible and straightforward handling of material and form.
Atlas of Making – Winter School
How does our understanding of architecture change when we build ourselves using local materials?
As part of our Winter School in China, students from Berlin and Hangzhou collaborated with local residents to create a temporary intervention in a riverbed. The project was not only about design, but also about sharing: tools, knowledge, and experiences. Here, making becomes a social practice—a moment of encounter with place and material.
The exhibition is accompanied by videos, objects, and a workshop on paper folding techniques.
LNdW – Lange Nacht der Wissenschaft
Exhibition at the Technical University Berlin
As part of the Long Night of Science, we are presenting three projects that engage with sustainable building, material cycles, and the value of craft-based processes:
Trash as Treasure – Design Studio
What happens when waste becomes a building material?
In our design studio, we explore Berlin’s urban waste streams—from discarded clothing to glass—and ask: Can these materials be reused and re-imagined architecturally? The studio focuses on hands-on experimentation at a 1:1 scale, embedded within the debate on circular economy and local resource use.
Ferrocement – Material Research
Ferrocement is a building technique that combines fine wire mesh with a thin layer of cement plaster. The experimental building elements on display demonstrate the material’s potential to achieve strength and durability with comparatively little material due to its thinness. Depending on the context, this approach can provide a resource-efficient and easily producible alternative to massive building structures. The technique can—depending on the conditions—unfold ecological, social, and economic potentials, especially through its accessible and straightforward handling of material and form.
Atlas of Making – Winter School
How does our understanding of architecture change when we build ourselves using local materials?
As part of our Winter School in China, students from Berlin and Hangzhou collaborated with local residents to create a temporary intervention in a riverbed. The project was not only about design, but also about sharing: tools, knowledge, and experiences. Here, making becomes a social practice—a moment of encounter with place and material.
The exhibition is accompanied by videos, objects, and a workshop on paper folding techniques.