Eva Castro, architect of geometry

Eva Castro (Argentina, 1969) studied architecture and urbanism at the Central University of Venezuela (1888-1894) and graduated in design from the Architectural Association in London (1994-1996). Before joining Holger Kehne to found the Plasma Studio in 1999, she worked for the Institute of Urbanism and Chora Ocean. In 2002 she received the YAYA (Young Architect of the Year Award).

So far the study has been identified by the innovative nature of all its projects, among them Minerva Street, the House of Circus, the House of the Musician, the number 186 Camden High Street and the number 136 Old Street, all in London (England); the rehabilitation of the Performing Arts Academy of Salzburg (Austria); and the aquarium Ozeaneum and the German Oceanographic Museum in Stralsund (Germany). Castro’s work has been widely exhibited in all of Europe, most recently Nodal Landscapes (2010) at the Deutsches Architekturzentrum in Berlin and Critical Territories (2011) at the London Architectural Association Gallery.

Castro’s immersion in cutting-edge hotel design began with the Cristall Sesto Hotel (Italy), perfectly integrated into the rocky landscape of the Dolomites. Its structure is delusional: an elevated ground in several layers that are taking up, forming a squiggly line and a wraparound glass facade, offering a kaleidoscopic view of the mountains from the lobby.

A decade ago, Castro, in partnership with Kehne, designed an entire floor of the multinational project Puerta America in Madrid, joining consecrated figures of international contemporary architecture such as Norman Foster, Jean Nouvel, Zaha Hadid and John Pawson.

Castro and Plasma Studio committed to an architectural model that emphasizes the ability of three-dimensional space by the free use of geometry and light. As a result, many of her projects defy the law of gravity, but only in appearance, as another key feature of her works is her cognitive intention.

Her designs aim away from any stereotype. In the renovations undertaken by Plasma Studio in studies of London artists, this limitation is supplemented with a riot of highly attractive and transgressive imagination. Walls that are sometimes closets, and others that are mirrors, stairs or windows add a wow factor to everyday life.

Moreover, these redesigns betray an obsession of contextualizing the private sphere in public, hence the use of glass partitions instead of other opaque materials to facilitate social interaction.