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Ve edic e · Ve edic o · Ve dic
The Reading o he Ve dic : ETSAB, 19 h Ma ch 2025, Ba celona
Han Meye
Vi ginie Picon-Le eb e
Naia a Mon e o Via
Ál a o Clua
VEREDICT
21
The ju y o he i h Manuel de Sola-Mo ales Eu opean P ize o
he bes PhD hesis on U banism was con on ed wi h a eco d
numbe o 68 PhD heses submi ed o he call. We we e su -
p ised and challenged by his la ge numbe o heses, and by he
wide ange o subjec s, hemes and egional backg ounds, om
Scandina ia o he Medi e anean and om he Uni ed Kingdom
o Bulga ia and Poland. I shows ha u banism, ha is, he ci y
and u ban li e, is a subjec ha is deeply oo ed and explo ed in
uni e si ies h oughou Eu ope.
As a esul o he wide ange o coun ies in which he heses
we e de eloped, he e was also conside able a ie y in he in-
e p e a ions o wha is u banism. Many heses we e based on
u ban s udies, wi h a ocus on social, poli ical o go e nance- e-
la ed issues, and he pa icipa ion o local people. Ano he g oup
o heses add essed he la ge-scale dynamics and changes in
economy and anspo , and ied o de ine he consequences o
spa ial de elopmen , o en a a egional and geog aphical scale.
Finally, o cou se, clima e change was iden i ied as a g owing, ap-
pealing opic o ci y esea ch, including ques ions like adap a ion
o changing wa e sys ems, hea s ess and he ene gy ansi ion.
Fo his edi ion o he Manuel de Solà-Mo ales P ize, he ju y de-
cided o emphasise and encou age app oaches ha ocus on he
co e discipline o u banism as he knowledge, analysis and design
o he ci y’s spa ial o m and s uc u e, on he unde s anding ha
i c ea es he essen ial condi ions o u ban li e, and can be used,
accep ed, enjoyed and lo ed by people. The ju y aimed o high-
ligh ha one o he keys and special s eng hs o ou discipline
is inding ways in which design can lead o inno a i e solu ions
o u ban space. We we e glad o disco e ha many submis-
sions sha ed his idea o wha u banism is abou . We no ed ha a
wide a ie y o hemes and opics had been examined wi hin his
common amewo k: s udies on he his o ic de elopmen o ci ies,
monog aphs on he wo k o excellen u banis s, and a modes
numbe o heses ha show how design can wo k as a o m o
explo a ion, as a oyage o disco e y, o iden i y new possibili ies
o u ban composi ions, wi h new condi ions o economic, social
and cul u al li e.
A e con eying his essen ial app oach and quali y selec ion c i-
e ia, he ju y wo ked in ensi ely o e iew all he submi ed he-
ses. Du ing he p ocess, he excep ional alue o he wo k was
e ealed, which en iched ou ision o he ield. We sha ed clea
op imism on he alue o esea ch de eloped in Eu opean uni-
e si ies. Finally, a e ca e ul delibe a ion, he ju y unanimously
selec ed h ee inalis s, ou special men ions and one i s p ize.
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CLAUDIA CAVALLO
Ti le: Ignazio Ga della. Cos ui e nel cos ui o. Diale ica della s o-
ia ca a e e dell’a chi e u a [Ignazio Ga della: Building Wi hin The
Buil : Dialec ics O His o y, Cha ac e O A chi ec u e]
Supe iso : An onella Gallo (IUAV)
Co-Supe iso s: Ra aella Ne i (POLIMI), Ma ia G azia Eccheli
(UNIFI), And ea Io io (IUAV)
Uni e si y: Uni e si à IUAV di Venezia (IUAV)
The ju y conside ed Claudia Ca allo’s hesis highly s imula ing and
o g ea in e es . I is pa o a se ies o heses on I alian u ban design
a chi ec s o he wen ie h cen u y. The hesis ocuses on he unde -
s anding o econs uc ion a e he wa and he ew i ing o he exis -
ing ci y as he un eiling o essen ial ea u es o a li ing space. Howe -
e , i is also a e lec ion on he meaning o Ga della’s a chi ec u e.The
esea ch akes he heme o ‘building on he buil ’ as an in ellec ual
a i ude and a pa adigma ic condi ion o he p ojec . This is illus a ed
h ough he s udy o Ignazio Ga della’s wo ks. Recons uc ion implies
a en ion o exis ing buildings and he ancien pa o he ci y as ac i e
elemen s o he composi ion. Fo he au ho , a econs uc ion p ojec
enables ope a ional e lec ions on a chi ec u e ques ions.This s udy’s
me hodology seamlessly in eg a es wo dis inc app oaches. The i s
is based on a chi al esea ch h ough di e en sou ces and s a e-o -
he-a knowledge. The second c i ically ed aws Ga della’s wo ks, o
b eak down he sys em ha he used and compa e design hypo heses.
The ju y would like o awa d he dis inc ion o FINALIST o h ee
doc o al heses, desc ibed he e in alphabe ical o de :
The compa ison be ween he design and he ac ual s age o he
econs uc ion is pa icula ly compelling and se es as an excellen
example o he ype o esea ch by o on design ha he ju y was
seeking. As he i alian a chi ec adop s an app oach o econs uc-
ion ha is di icul o classi y and unde s and, Claudia Ca allo has
named Ga della’s p oposals o di e en condi ions o he ci y, o
example, econs uc ion p ojec s a e dubbed ‘s ongholds’ o ‘new
soils’. She no iced ha Ga della’s a i ude o he ancien ci y is e y
a om he Enligh enmen concep o he monumen as an isola ed
objec . Ga della’s p ojec c ea es a new ela ionship be ween mon-
umen s and u ban ab ic ha es ablishes a o m o con inui y.The
second pa o he hesis ocuses on he Con empo a y A Pa ilion
(PAC) in Milan, which Claudia Ca allo conside s o be a mani es o.
She ollows he ‘my iad ske ches, design e sions’ o he PAC. The
p ojec ’s as ly di e en scales p o ide aluable insigh in o Ga del-
la’s c ea i e p ocess.
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DOMENICO CRISTOFALO
Ti le: La ce imonia del compo e. Me odi e ecniche di composizione
nei p oge i u bani di Gianugo Polesello [Ce emony o Composing:
Me hods and Technics o Composing in Gianugo Polesello U ban
P ojec s]
Supe iso : Ca lo Moccia (POLIBA)
Uni e si y: Poli ecnico di Ba i
Domenico C is o alo’s hesis is also pa o a se ies o hesis s ud-
ies on he wo k o I alian a chi ec s dealing wi h he exis ing ci y
cons uc ion in he wen ie h cen u y. The o igin o he hesis is he
b eak in con inui y be ween wo an inomian ideas o he ci y (his-
o ical and mode n). The buil he i age o he wen ie h cen u y is
conside ed p oblema ic, especially in he subu bs whe e he ci y
expands in o he coun yside wi h wi h new buildings wi h no ela-
ionships wi h he su ounding a ea.
The esea ch is abou Gianugo Polesello’s wo k as a case s udy, o
unde s and he p inciples and easons o his in e en ion p oposal
o he ci y. Polesello was a p o esso a IUAV in Venice and an a chi-
ec based in Udine o whom u ban composi ion equi es all possible
knowledge and echniques om ma hema ics o psychology.
The hypo hesis o he hesis is ha he composi ions a e a anged
by ‘means o a chi ec u e’ and he heo y o he ci y is p oduced
by designing he ci y. The hesis aims o app oach esea ch on he
sphe e o design and is based on he use o ‘app op ia e g aphic
language’ o compa e a selec ion o Polesello’s p ojec s. The e-
d awing o he composi ion is associa ed wi h an unde s anding
o he concep s used by he a chi ec . E en hough he abs ac
cha ac e o hese designs lea es aside he ques ion o social
condi ions and cons uc ion, we conside ha hey a e a e y
good way o unde s anding he a angemen o meanings in he
design p ocess.
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KRISTINE C.V. HOLTEN-ANDERSEN
Ti le: Med and- og landskab som ak ø e i byud ikling: Ko e i
møde mellem planlægningsp aksisse [Emb acing wa e - and
landscapes as ac o s in u ban de elopmen : Maps in assembly o
planning p ac ices]
Supe iso s: Jonna Majgaa d K a up (Royal Danish Academy),
K is ine Jensen (Denma k), Ka ina Wibe g (AARCH).
Uni e si y: The Royal Danish Academy
The hesis o e s a compelling and inno a i e explo a ion o he
in e sec ion be ween u ban planning and landscape a chi ec u e
wi hin he amewo k o Denma k’s ‘we geog aphies’. The ju y
conside s i a ema kable example o ‘ac ion esea ch’. I demon-
s a es how design can se e as a igo ous, e ec i e me hod o
high- alue esea ch and ice e sa. I highligh s he po en ial o
in e disciplina y collabo a ion o deepen ou unde s anding o com-
plex u ban wa e scapes.
The s udy in es iga es how u banis s’ and landscape a chi ec s’
me hodologies can acili a e he e-in eg a ion o wa e wi hin he
u ban en i onmen , ul ima ely shaping u ban o m and unc ions.
G ounded in he p emise ha he u ban is inhe en ly and necessa i-
ly en angled wi h wa e – no only spa ially and symbolically bu also
me abolically – he hesis challenges adi ional no ions o wa e as
a passi e elemen . I p esen s wa e as an ac i e agen in u ban
o ma ion, ope a ing h ough in ica e in e ac ions be ween human
and non-human ac o s. To assess his dynamic ela ionship, he
hesis deploys a solid and cohe en abduc i e app oach, d awing
insigh s om h ee map-cen ed collabo a i e wo kshops. These
wo kshops engage wi h case s udies a a ying scales, spanning
municipal planning p ac ices, p i a e landscape a chi ec u al s a -
egies and pa icipa o y design.
The ju y commends he hesis o i s signi ican con ibu ion o he
ield on h ee le els: in o ma i e, h ough an in-dep h examina ion
o wa e managemen heo ies and p ac ices and he deploymen
o aluable ca og aphic e idence; o ma i e, by os e ing s ake-
holde engagemen , enabling isualisa ion o complex u ban land-
scapes, and suppo ing ad anced esea ch collabo a ion on he
ield; and no ma i e, by ad oca ing o he ein eg a ion o wa e
dynamics wi hin he in ica e amewo ks ha challenge con em-
po a y u banism.
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IGNACIO GALÁN
Ti le: (Re)occupy he uin: Un eiling he capaci y o e nacula
he i age o he egene a ion o depopula ed se lemen s in
moun ain e i o ies unde ans o ma ion. A s udy case o he
Spanish Cen al Py enees
Supe iso s: Y es Schoonjans (KU Leu en)
Co-Supe iso : Gisèle Gan ois (KU Leu en)
Uni e si y: Uni e si y KU Leu en
Acco ding o he ju y, Ignacio Galàn’s hesis (Re)occupy he uin is
a wonde ul example o esea ch-by-design in he ield o u banism
and dese es special a en ion. The hesis ocuses on a u al,
de elic illage in he Py enees. The i s eac ion migh be ‘Wha
does his ha e o do wi h u banism?’ Howe e , his hesis is an
in e es ing and o iginal u banis ic s udy o wo easons.
Fi s , i clea ly shows how he u al coun yside has become pa
o he u ban wo ld – no only as a p o ide o ood, bu also and
inc easingly as pa o u ban li es yles, as an a ea o ec ea ion
and con empla ion, and as an a ea o expe imen s wi h new
sus ainable building echniques and ecological ood p oduc ion.
In many espec s, he u al en i onmen has become a labo a o y
o he u ban wo ld. Galán desc ibes he u al landscape o he
Py enees as a landscape ull o impo an cul u al he i age ha
is also e y ulne able. I is h ea ened by hough less use o he
landscape o new in as uc u es, mining, wind a ms and so on.
The ques ion in his espec is no how o main ain all he his o ic
elemen s and a oid any change. The ques ion, add essed by
Ignacio Galán, is how he e nacula he i age o his landscape
The ju y would like o awa d he i le o SPECIAL MENTION o ou
doc o al heses, desc ibed below in alphabe ical o de :
as a cul u al alue can play a cen al ole in he adap a ion o he
landscape and illages o a new u ban eali y.
Second, Galán’s me hodological app oach is impo an and can also
be applied o he big ci y. The u al illage in he Py enees unc ions
as a labo a o y o de eloping and es ing a esea ch me hod. In
his me hod, he d awing plays a cen al ole: analy ical d awings
o he e i o y, o indi idual buildings, g ound plans, sec ions and
pe spec i es all play a key ole in he esea ch i sel , o unde s and
he speci ic spa ial cha ac e o he si e. Design unc ions as
a way o explo e new possibili ies, es ing new a angemen s o
buildings and open space. These d awings also play a key ole
in communica ion wi h local people, homeowne s, new and o me
inhabi an s and a me s. They de elop a na a i e ca og aphy o
he illage and he egion. The d awings include local adi ional
knowledge and unc ion as a way o communica ing wi h expe s in
disciplines like ecology and building echnology. Finally, hey c ea e
new pe spec i es o eo ganisa ion o he buil ab ic as a condi ion
o li e and local economy in he u u e.
In sho , Ignacio Galán’s hesis is an exempla y piece o u banis ic wo k.
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MINH QUANG NGUYEN
Ti le: Fo es and wa e u banism o adap o global wa ming: a case
s udy in Cen al Vie nam
Supe iso : Kelly Shannon (KU Leu en)
Co-Supe iso : B uno De Meulde (KU Leu en)
Uni e si y: Uni e si y KU Leu en
Minh Quang Nguyen’s hesis can be conside ed pa o a se ies
o hesis s udies a KU Leu en ha ocus on new a angemen s
o wa e managemen in and combined wi h a changing u ban
con ex . The hesis is an example o he Leu en ‘school’. I is a e y
good example o a piece o esea ch ha add esses he complexi y
o he wa e sys em as an assignmen o u ban design.
As a ju y, we wan o exp ess ou admi a ion o he a en ion in
he esea ch o he di e en scales o he wa e sys em and o he
possibili ies o combining he ans o ma ion o he wa e sys em
wi h a necessa y ans o ma ion o he u ban en i onmen .
Focusing on a sec ion o he Vie namese landscape om he
moun ains in he wes o he coas line in he eas , Nguyen shows
con incingly how he wa e s in di e en pa s o his sec ion a e
in e ela ed and how hey in luence each o he , and how a wa e
managemen s a egy should include hese in e ela ionships and
he complexi y o he sys em as a whole.
Mo eo e , he me i o he hesis is ha i illus a es how a new
a angemen o he wa e sys em can unc ion as le e age o new
u ban de elopmen : i can p e en u ban de elopmen whe e i is
no desi able, and i can s imula e new ypes o land use and new
u ban a angemen s in o he places.
In his ision, adap a ion o he wa e sys em because o clima e
change is no only a way o dec ease lood isk, bu also a way o
c ea ing new pe spec i es o u ban i ali y.
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PAU BAJET
Ti le: Time Ca alys s: Resea ch by Design in he Loose Ends o
Ba celona
Supe iso s: Flo ian Beigel and Philip Ch is ou (LondonMe )
Co-Supe iso s: Ma hew Ba ac (LondonMe ) and Pe e Joan
Ra e lla (UPC)
Uni e si y: London Me opoli an Uni e si y
The ju y wishes o highligh his hesis’s dis inc a chi ec u al
app oach o he ci y. I is a s udy ha explici ly inco po a es
ma e iali y, a en ion o s a egic de ail and e en conside a ions o
cons uc abili y wi hin he u ban discou se.
Secondly, he ju y app ecia ed he engagemen wi h he opic o
‘ ime’ in he hesis. I is conside ed no only as a passi e physical
dimension ha impac s u ban his o y, bu also as an ac i e o ce
ha is capable o shaping u u e a chi ec u al and u ban o m, hus
os e ing p ocesses o app op ia ion and ans o ma ion.
Thi dly, he hesis’s app oach o knowledge h ough he c ea i e
design o a numbe o ‘ ime ca alys s’ is pa icula ly compelling when
i is applied o an unexpec ed case s udy o one o he un inished,
pe iphe al edges o he well-s udied ci y o Ba celona.
In he esea ch, his neglec ed and banal place becomes a c ea i e
labo a o y whe e heo e ical and c i ical a gumen s a e applied
by means o measu able a chi ec u e and u ban a e ac s. The
p oposed solu ions a e no aimed a p o iding a de ini e o pe ec
solu ion o he place, bu a he a es ing possible u u es o
i s diach onic ans o ma ion. The ju y conside s his a ele an
app oach o he ield o u ban esea ch, as i con ibu es inno a i ely
o a ich line o s udies ha illumina e c ea i e s a egies o mo e
open and meaning ul u u es o he ci y’s o m.
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PEDRO VASCO DE MELO MARTINS
Ti le: A Pe sis ência da Fo ma U bana Lei u a das p é-exis ências
na cons ução da cidade po uguesa [The Pe sis ence o u ban
o m: In e p e ing he p e-exis ences in he cons uc ion o he
Po uguese ci y]
Supe iso : Sé gio Pad ão Fe nandes (ULisboa)
Co-Supe iso : Paulo Jo ge Ga cia Pe ei a (ULisboa)
Uni e si y: Uni e sidade de Lisboa
The ju y conside s ha Ped o Vasco de Melo Ma in’s hesis is a
e y good example o esea ch in he ield o u banism and dese es
special a en ion. The esea ch is based on he unsus ainabili y o
inde ini e and unlimi ed u ban expansion.
The hesis ocuses on he ela ionships be ween ancien buil o ms
and he ime a e , which he au ho calls he ‘mode n mo emen
c isis’. Following he many au ho s since he mid- wen ie h cen u y
who sough o unde s and he genesis o he u ban objec , Ped o
Vasco is in sea ch o he ule ha led o i s p oduc ion. He conside s
he u ban o m as he esul o a ‘cons an p ocess o cons uc ion,
main enance and euse’.
The hypo hesis o he hesis is ha an unde s anding o he complex
na u e o u ban o m can be achie ed h ough he s udy ‘o u ban
o m’s whole, global, e olu iona y p ocess in compa ison wi h o he
simila o m(s) in he same cul u al con ex ’. He aims o iden i y
p e-exis ing u ban o ms ha a e capable o ‘pu ing he pas ,
(his o y), p esen and u u e (…) in dialogue’. The me hodology is
clea ly ela ed o design as he ocuses on se e al Po uguese ci ies
and p oduces compa a i e images o iden i y hei composi ional
p inciples as a chi ec u al o u ban ypes.
The esea ch has an encyclopaedic dimension and he
documen a ion and d awings a e ascina ing ools o help us
app oach a ci y’s cul u al he i age and how o make i isible.
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