Arqi-tude: Season 3 of Yacademy Podcast - Voices Beyond Architecture is out

Yacademy Podcast - Voices Beyond Architecture started with a proposal by two students - Leah and Serena - who attended the courses in Architecture for Landscape and Architecture for Common Spaces at Yacademy in Fall 2025. Their idea was to create an intimate space where students could have a deeper and more personal conversation with the architects they met in the classroom, exploring their insecurities and the difficulties they had encountered during their journey, before becoming the professionals they turned out to be.

After Season 1 (here is the full article including all the episodes recorded by Leah and Serena) and Season 2 (realized by Giuliana and Federica, and Victoria and Vittorio), we are now thrilled to announce Season 3, with the participation of students attending the Architecture for Fashion, Architecture for Humanity, and Architecture for Inclusion courses in Spring 2026.

Divided into pairs, Frida Landau Lomholt and Hrisheeta Singh, Alessia Aliaga Saenz and Maria del Pilar Victoria Martinez, Ramiro Saludas and Brahm Richard Brooks, Rhona Johanna De Lange and Sheroek Taha had the opportunity to talk with Anna Heringer, Gunter Klix (APC Architectural Pioneering Consultants), Claudio Silvestrin, Suzan Kcmaklioglu (Foster + Partners), Christopher Ward, Emmanuel Ramírez (MMX Studio), and Joaquin Bonifaz (Aranda\Lasch). 

Read on to know more about their experience from their point of view and listen to the full episodes!

“Archittude”: architecture as an expression of attitude and values - written by Alessia Aliaga

The shaping of this podcast season began by asking ourselves what common thread connects our different interests in architecture for humanity, fashion, and inclusion. More importantly, rather than focusing on the description of architectural projects, we were interested in something more inward-looking, the way architects position themselves in relation to what they design. Therefore, the term “Archittude” was coined as a way of encapsulating the understanding of architecture as an expression of attitude and values. This concept subsequently became the guiding framework of our conversations, allowing us to move beyond representation while also moving towards an exploration of how architects navigate and reflect on their own practice.

In order to create a level playing field for architects from different areas of practice, the structure of the interviews was intentionally kept consistent. Each conversation began with an introduction to the conceptual framework, followed by the same opening question regarding what is their attitude towards architecture as a process. From there, the dialogue gradually moved from the formal aspects of practice to more personal reflections, often revealing moments of self-discovery. In this sense, the interviews sought to unfold how architects balance their ideals with pragmatic constraints, and how these tensions ultimately shape their design approach.

Moreover, this format created space for a more introspective dimension of the conversation. As responses often returned to formative moments in their careers, functioning as flashbacks to experiences that shaped their understanding of the discipline. In this sense, the podcast became a conversation about understanding the attitude behind the projects that have inspired us in our own journey. Ultimately, what emerged is access to a realm in which design reveals itself as the result of ongoing negotiations in our human core and the world we aspire to build.

Arqi-tude - scratch below the surface to discover something human - written by Brahm Brooks

I’m going to preface this reflection by saying simply, it is imaginatively subjective. The third edition of the Yacademy podcast revealed to me something vital about the state of people. Past sessions had, at most, three teams of interviewers. When Marta and Stefania held the initial media meeting for those of us interested, fourteen people attended. And yes, about seven teams ended up participating. My first observation, a significant increase in students' interest in interviewing designers. Maybe we had a uniquely curious group, but I suspect something else is at the heart of the cause.

Pairs from all three courses: Architecture for Fashion, for Humanity, and for Inclusion were involved. That meant a lot of people with different interests, talking with architects from various fields. Our large ensemble had to find some common ground to decide on a theme for our conversations. Naturally, we gathered at a favorite local watering hole, Camera A Sud. After a few pints, the idea for “Arqi-tude” was developed, and that was our launching point for our conversations. I recognize you may be thinking that’s a bit kitchy, or even “what does that mean?” It is “attitudes towards architecture.” This was our solution to balancing a lot of different inputs. We hoped it would leave conversations free for some interpretive liberties. 

If you are still with me, I want to jump now to an important question you are likely wondering, “So what?” At the core of most of our groups' inputs sat the same thing, the architect and their perspective. More broadly, for anyone who wants some semblance of insight out of these ramblings, the person and their story. That is what Ramiro and I tried to delve into for twenty valuable minutes. All of the guests are busy architects, designers, and beyond, who do unique and important work - we wanted to know how they got there and why they continue.

In truth, when I look towards my future and ours collectively (the human race and natural world), it feels unstable. I’m under no illusions. I know that every person who has ever been, at one time, thought the same thing. But, being young today presents a new set of challenges. They are not easier or more difficult, just different. And they feel more alien than the ones of the past. The science fiction of not so long ago looks a lot like the reality we are living. As if reality and the human experience are no longer sturdy and solid as they were when I was born in 1999. 

I believe the number of people who volunteered to participate, and the topic we chose, speaks to the deeper reality of people in this time we find ourselves in. We are hoping to scratch below the surface to discover something human. I think that is why so many of us jumped at the opportunity to take part in this podcast. What do we do when we feel lost or unsure? Apparently, something very human. We ask questions and listen for answers. And sometimes, it helps to know that someone else in the room wondered the same thing.

S03 EP01. Form Follows Love: Architecture as a Tool to Improve Lives | A conversation with Anna Heringer by Frida and Hrisheeta

S03 EP02. Learning from Place: Climate, Context, and Collaboration | A conversation with Gunter Klix 

S03 EP03. The Minimalist Instinct: Meditative Spaces and Architectural Intuition | A conversation with Claudio Silvestrin by Brahm and Ramiro

S03 EP04. Beauty & Responsibility: A Conversation with Suzan Uckmaklioglu (Foster + Partners) by Rhona and Sheroek

S03 EP05. From Urban Scales to Retail Details: Holistic Design and Memory | A conversation with Christopher Ward by Brahm and Ramiro

S03 EP06. An Attitude Towards Shaping Collective Life | A conversation with Emmanuel Ramírez (MMX Studio) by Alessia and Pilar

S03 EP07. Expanded Architecture: Material Systems and the Human Experience | A Conversation with Joaquín Bonifaz (Aranda\Lasch) by Brahm and Ramiro

Season 3 of Yacademy Podcast - Voices Beyond Architecture is fully available on Spotify.