Cooper Hewitt says...
In 2002, Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello established Studio Rael San Fratello in Oakland, California with the guiding principle to “disrupt the conventions of architecture by tackling projects not often of interest to architects.” Through extensive research and technological developments, the studio pushes the boundaries of materials and construction techniques used in architecture and design. Together they founded Emerging Objects in 2013, an independent additive manufacturing MAKE-tank specializing in 3D-printed architecture, building components, and design products. In 2014, Rael San Fratello was named an Emerging Voice by The Architectural League of New York.
Rael and Fratello both received a Master in Architecture from Columbia University where they met before establishing their studio. San Fratello is an architectural researcher and designer, centered on the convergence of digital, ecological, and building component design in architecture. She is Assistant Professor at San José State University in the School of Art & Design. Rael is an applied architectural researcher, design activist, and thought leader in the fields of additive manufacturing and earthen architecture. He is an Associate Professor of Architecture at the University of California, Berkeley and the author of Borderwall as Architecture: A Manifesto for the U.S.-Mexico Boundary and Earth Architecture.
