HABITABLE studio
DESIGN / ARCHITECTURE / ARTinfo@habitable.studio
t. (+1) 530 507 8896

HABITABLE activities can be divided into human-scale urban research, micro-living research, and applied projects ranging from educational, micro residential, and modular furniture, all of which are linked by the common theme of “small is beyond beautiful.”

PHILOSOPHY

Economy + Ecology + Elegance

A Habitable space is
one that changes
just as our lives change.
Habitable spaces emphasize precise proportions and a sense of spatial freedom.

We believe that design contributes to ecology, health, and economic progress. In our projects, nature and architecture coexist in a symbiotic relationship.
MISSION

Habitable Studio creates
transformable environments
for living, working, and playing.
HABITABLE emphasizes flexibility and elegance across projects of multiple scales.

Our designs embody thoughtful simplicity, meticulous materiality, and adept play with light and proportion.
DESIGN SERVICES

Dynamic Co-working Spaces
Flexible Living Environments
Joyful MicroLiving
Online Design Consultations
ARCHITECTURE / ART / URBAN DESIGN
Our work introduces an adaptable form of architecture. To transform your space, we will act as an emissary between the building's potential and your needs and wishes.

We carefully study the natural and cultural context before developing our ideas. With our culturally rich perspective and decades of design experience, we are skilled in infusing your environment with efficiency, harmony, and joy.
“Marta’s expertise of maximizing small spaces is without compare.” Jay Marroquin, client.
FOUNDER

“Small is not only beautiful, small implies experimentation, ecology, economy, efficiency, and intimacy. Small things make a big impact!”

MARTA RODRIGUEZ

PH.D. ARCHITECT & DESIGN CONSULTANT
MARTA@HABITABLE.STUDIO

Marta Rodriguez started her career as an architect in 2004 at OMA (Office for Metropolitan Architecture)/Rem Koolhaas in Rotterdam. She was part of the team that won the international competition to design the New Court Rothschild Bank in London.

In 2006, while working at an Engineering company (Ingenor) in Madrid, she won the first prize in the competition for designing the new University Library of the South Campus of the UPM in Madrid. From 2007 to 2009, Marta collaborated with Lahoz Lopez Architects in designing and developing schools and hospitals, including the expansion of the Toledo National Hospital of Paraplegics and San Gil Abad Public School in Cuenca.

In 2008, she initiated her own practice in Madrid, winning several awards in public architectural competitions. These included the first prize in a competition for designing a University Research Center for the University of Valladolid (2010), the second prize for designing a research & classroom building facility for the UVA (2009), and the second prize in the architectural competition for building Affordable Housing for Young People in Cordoba (2008).

In 2013, after extensive studies at UC Berkeley and Science Po in Paris, and research in Tokyo, Marta earned her Ph.D. in Architecture (ETSAM), specializing in Japanese architecture and French Design. Interview

Subsequently, she moved to Houston in 2014, becoming an Associate Professor (tenured since 2020) at the Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and Design. She teaches the "Intergenerational, Compact, Communal Living" architectural design studio and the "Design for Dignity and Ethics for the City" seminar. Her research primarily centers on collective housing, joyful micro-living, and inclusive human-scale urban design.

In 2020, Marta founded HABITABLE Studio, a design firm focused on creating healthy, sustainable, inclusive, and transformable environments, indoors and outdoors.

Marta's research-driven design approach has been featured in numerous design and architecture publications. In 2021, she authored a book on Charlotte Perriand and Kazuyo Sejima, a manifesto reflecting her philosophy that advocates bringing a more humanistic and ecological sensitivity into the built environment. Marta has also created an online journal, Habitable City, which promotes a more egalitarian, connected, safe, and livable city.

HABITABLE TEAM

+ Marta Rodriguez
Founder & Principal - Architect, Professor, Author, and Architecture & Design Consultant.

+ Michael LindemannArchitectural Designer.

+ Collaborators since 2008:
Lené Fourie, Alejandra Velazquez, Dijana Handanovic, Tuan Mai, Ghazal Saliman, Ingrid Selse, Emine Canak, Eirik Erstad, Marta de las Heras, Alejandro Sanz, Rafael Ureña, Natalia Varela.

HABITABLE studio
DESIGN / ARCHITECTURE / ARTinfo@habitable.studio
t. (+1) 530 507 8896

PUBLICATIONS

MEDIA

Instagram

Habitable City
Promoting a more egalitarian, connected, safe, and LIVABLE city

Subtle Revolution
SMALL is not only beautiful but sustainable and has enabled architectural subtle revolution beyond borders and times.

LET’S TALK!
info@habitable.studio t. (+1) 530 507 8896

HABITABLE

DESIGN/ ARCHITECTURE/ ART

CHILDREN’S LIBRARY: A World of Imagination and Wonder
Pinocchio Children’s Library Competion, Collodi, Italy (2018)

The Children’s Library creates an experiential environment that unfolds like origami from the paper factory. Two doors open to a world of imagination and wonder, like a big, secret garden. Just as Pinocchio lives his adventures from his home to school, our library offers several journeys on a path from Via Benvenuto Pasquienilli (west) to Via delle Cartiere (east). Inside, the visitor moves through spaces that go from areas of playing to learning and creating three levels of sound: noise (jubilee), vibration and silence.

Origami implies a way of designing as choreography between interior and exterior. The paper factory “produces” the entire building that unfolds like a three-dimensional children’s book.

Noise zones are arranged to the south, while reading areas are to the north, taking advantage of natural light. All circulation areas are exterior, constructed from light materials to encourage light penetration and visual translucency, extending the reach of patio life. The astonishment comes from the changes in scale.

There are “flying houses” and a tower. As one moves through the library, the structure breaks up and the journeys multiply. It creates a sensorial environment of hidden spaces and unevenness. The astonishment comes from the changes in scale.

The Children’s Library converses with Collodi and contributes with its iconic and genuine image. The new tower of the library speaks to the medieval tower while giving a nod to the church. A garden-bridge crosses the river, and the building itself acts as a bridge that also crosses the river, giving the explorer a sense of the unexpected.

The 'hortus ludi': a Medieval walled garden combining a grassy and shaded pleasure area with an herb garden, illumination from a 15th-century French manuscript of the Roman de la rose.

The roof of the library is designed to be enjoye from the baroque villa and the medieval part of Collodi located on a hill.

Project team: Marta Rodriguez + Tuan Mai + Ghazal Saliman,

CONTACT
info@habitable.studio
t. (+1) 530 507 8896

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