Josep Lluís Mateo was born in Barcelona (1949) and graduated in Architecture in 1974 from the ETSAB, later obtaining his PhD (cum laude) from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia in 1994. He is also Professor Emeritus, Doctor of Architecture and Design at ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology). He has taught and lectured at major academic institutions worldwide, including the Getty Foundation in Los Angeles (Scholar), the Berlin Sommer Akademie, and Harvard Graduate School of Design (Guest Professor), among others.
In 1991, he founded mateoarquitectura, a practice based in Barcelona that has developed a broad range of projects—office buildings, urban planning, public spaces, housing—always with a strong international focus. Mateo’s practice is currently involved in a number of local and international projects such as the new Film Theatre of Catalonia in Barcelona, the new headquarters for PGGM Pension Fund Company in Zeist, Holland, and the office building on the former site of Renault factories in Boulogne-Billancourt, Paris, among others.
With each of his projects, Mateo seeks to connect the practice of construction with research and development in both intellectual and programmatic terms. His work lies at the intersection between conceptual thinking and built reality, combining technical rigor with ongoing inquiry. His architecture has been widely published and exhibited globally, receiving numerous awards and honors. In 2011, he received the Aplus Award for Best Career Achievement; in 2019, DOMUS named him among the 100 best architecture studios worldwide; and in 2021, he was named Author of the Year by the Juanzong Archive Awards (China).
Among his most significant projects in Spain are the Toni Catany International Photography Center in Mallorca, the Barcelona International Convention Center (CCIB), the Filmoteca de Catalunya, the renovation and extension of the Mercat del Ninot in Barcelona, and the paving of the historic center of Ullastret. Internationally, his work includes the headquarters for PGGM in Zeist (Netherlands), La Factory office building in Boulogne-Billancourt, the ESMA School in Montpellier, and the Castelo Branco Cultural Center.
Academic collaborations and teaching:
Josep Lluís Mateo has been Professor of the Architecture Department at the Swiss Federal Polytechnic in Zurich (ETH-Z) since 2002. He has also taught and lectured at numerous institutions around the world, including Princeton, Columbia University in New York, the Harvard Graduate School of Design, ABK Stuttgart, UP8 Paris, OAF Oslo and ITESM Mexico. He was Visiting Scholar at the Jean P. Getty Center in Los Angeles from 1991 to 1992. Josep Lluís Mateo is President since 2009 of the Board of Directors of the Barcelona Institute of Architecture. He has been a member of a number of juries and expert committees, including the Quality Committee of Barcelona City Council (2000-2008), and for prizes such as the European Landscape Award and the Thyssen Award.
Recent exhibitions and prizes:
The practice’s work has been exhibited on numerous occasions thanks to its international influence. New York’s MoMA devoted a space in the exhibition “Spain: On Site” (2006) to its apartment building in Valencia for the Sociopolis Project. Individual exhibitions include those at Ras Gallery (Barcelona, 2009), Architekturgalerie Aedes (Berlin, 2004), Architekturzentrum Wien (Vienna, 1998), Col•legi d’Arquitectes de Catalunya (Barcelona, 1998),Galerie Fragner (Prague, 1998), Galerie Aedes (Berlin, 1994), Architekturgalerie Luzern (Luzern, 1992) and Architekturgalerie Munich (Munich, 1991).
The work of Josep Lluís Mateo has been awarded many prizes, including:
- Top International Purpose-Built Venue 2008, First Prize. Best International Convention Centre category.
Organized by C&IT magazine, London. Project: CCIB-Barcelona International Convention Centre
- 2008 Archizinc Award, First Prize. Collective Housing category. Project: Sant Jordi Students’ Hall of Residence, Barcelona
- European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture - Mies van der Rohe Award 2005, Runner-up. Project: CCIB- Barcelona International Convention Centre
- 15th Award of Grupo Dragados de Arquitectura.
