Marking its first hybrid (online and in-person) edition, the 3rd International Facade Forum 2023 will take place on April 26. Broadcasting from Mexico City, the event will feature 15 lectures by international speakers under the academic direction of Marshall Academia de Fachadas (Bill Marshall and Karina Tarrisse) and organized by the Sarzabal agency (Hernán Barbero Sarzabal and Maui Cittadini), alongside Daniela Ruiz de Chávez, who is managing the organization in Mexico.
Addressing topics related to building facades, innovation in architecture and industry, sustainability through energy efficiency and the circular economy, and technology from a regional perspective, the 3rd International Facade Forum 2023 features a program that invites diverse experts to share their thoughts, visions, and experiences. The event consists of 15 20-minute lectures aimed at architects, engineers, developers, builders, and construction industry professionals. Registration for the online format is free and is now open through the following link.
Invited speakers include Mariano Efron (Architecturestudio from France), Javier Sánchez (Taller de arquitectura JSa), Jorge and Arturo Arditti (Arditti + RDT Arquitectos), Julieta Boy (real estate project expert from Gensler), Gustavo Carmona (Estudio MATERIA), Carlos Gómez Chinchón (director of LAM Arquitectos in Mexico, associated with Spain's Estudio Lamela), and Loreta Castro Reguera (Taller Capital). In addition, participating facade consultants include César Eloy Pérez Mercado (Master in Lightweight Structures), Anayeli Tapia (specialist in glass interlayers), Antai Ramos Stevens (LEED Green Associate), and Martín Ferreyra (industrial rope access technician for facade assembly). The event will be coordinated by Bill Marshall, who will also provide the closing remarks for each lecture.
Meet the speakers and explore their most outstanding works below.
Bill Marshall
Guillermo (Bill) Marshall is an architect who graduated from the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Buenos Aires. He completed his studies abroad (Yokohama, Japan, and Bath, UK), specializing in Building Envelope Systems and Technologies. He currently directs Estudio Marshall y Asociados SA, a facade consultancy with offices in Buenos Aires, Madrid, and Davie, Florida, and projects across Europe, Asia, and the Americas.
He is also the founder and director of Marshall Academia de Fachadas, and has taught courses and seminars on the subject at various universities, congresses, and symposia. Author of several technical articles and reports, he is an active member of various committees on windows, curtain walls, and glass-related topics with the Argentine standards organization (IRAM) and serves as a technical advisor to the Argentine Glass Association (CAVIPLAN).
Javier Sánchez
A founding partner and director of Taller de arquitectura JSa, Javier Sánchez holds an architecture degree from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México and a Master of Science in Real Estate Development from Columbia University. In 1996, he founded Taller de Arquitectura JSa, focusing his practice on urban acupuncture and heritage restoration. Today, Aisha Ballesteros and Benedikt Fahlbusch co-direct the Mexico City studio with him, while Irvine Torres manages JSa Peru.
His accolades include the Golden Lion at the Venice Biennale for the Brasil 44 social housing restoration project, the Chicago Athenaeum's Best New Global Design for the Condesa DF hotel, and the Gold Medal at the National Biennale of Mexican Architecture for the Juan Soriano Cultural Center and Museum.
Arturo Arditti and Jorge Arditti (Arditti + RDT Arquitectos)
Founded around 1963, the work of Arditti + RDT Arquitectos represents an emerging expression of modern architecture in Mexico. In 1989, founder Mauricio Arditti brought his sons, Arturo and Jorge Arditti—both architecture graduates from Universidad Anáhuac—into the practice, establishing Arditti + RDT Arquitectos to focus primarily on architectural design and real estate development.
In 2014, Arditti + RDT Arquitectos was invited by Rem Koolhaas to exhibit their work at the Venice Biennale. Their work has received over 80 national and international awards and has been exhibited in Mexico and cities including New York, Madrid, Beijing, Sofia, Cologne, Buenos Aires, Tel Aviv, Haifa, San Salvador, Santiago, Barcelona, Toledo, Murcia, Prague, Venice, Dubai, Orlando, Los Angeles, and Miami. They recently received the 2019 CAM-SAM Professional Merit Award, as well as an Honorary Doctorate at the 'Latin America Leaders Awards 2019' at the United Nations headquarters in Vienna, Austria.
Gustavo Carmona Muñoz
Gustavo Carmona holds an architecture degree from Universidad Anáhuac Norte, a Master of Architecture from Arizona State University, and a diploma in Leadership and Design Thinking from Harvard University. Early in his career, he worked at Francisco Serrano Architects. After completing his master's degree, he worked for SmithGroup JJR in San Francisco, California. In 2006, he returned to Mexico to co-found Estudio MATERIA alongside Lisa Beltrán in Mexico City.
Focusing his work and design on sensory experience linked to material and detail—what he calls 'detailed atmosphere'—he is deeply committed to shaping a creative and collaborative culture unique in its values and methods. The studio has developed projects of various scales and typologies across several cities in Mexico, as well as in Portugal, the United States, Brazil, Chile, Panama, Colombia, Barbados, Ecuador, and Puerto Rico.
Since 2007, Carmona has participated in numerous congresses and workshops organized by various academic institutions. His accolades include the 2022 Cemex Award – Special Prizes and the 2022 Architecture MasterPrize – Cultural Buildings for the Quinta Montes Molina Cultural Center, as well as the 2018 UNESCO Prix Versailles for Retail Architecture for Louis Vuitton Masaryk. Additionally, he has won multiple honors including the Interior Design Awards Latin America by IIDA Chicago, the Retail Awards from the Retail Design Institute in NYC, the Glocal Magazine Noldi Schreck Award, and the 'a' Diseño Award.
Julieta Boy
An architect graduated from the Faculty of Architecture at UNAM, Julieta Boy holds a master's degree from the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya and a Master in Architectural Design from UNAM. With 25 years of experience collaborating with renowned architecture firms, she specializes in residential, corporate, commercial, and urban projects. She has also developed independent projects and contributed to various architecture and construction publications, such as Enlace and Obras.
During her tenure as Project Manager at LBR&A Arquitectos, she managed the design and supervised the construction of Torre Reforma in Mexico City. She has also served as Design Director at Némesis Capital—a company dedicated to developing commercial, industrial, residential, and tourism properties throughout Mexico, including the Bora Tower designed by Zaha Hadid. Additionally, she worked as Deputy Director of Architecture at Gicsa and, while at WSP-Mexico, developed construction documents for large-scale projects. After partnering on several public space projects, she recently joined Gensler Mexico as Technical Director for construction documents on residential and mixed-use projects.
Carlos Gómez Chinchón
After studying architecture at the Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura de Madrid, Carlos Gómez Chinchón specialized in building construction and urban planning in Darmstadt, Germany. For 12 years, he worked as director of competitions and projects at Estudio Lamela. Currently, he is the General Director of LAM Arquitectos SA de CV, the firm's affiliate in Mexico.
With 38 first-prize awards in both national and international competitions, he led the development of the Contact Center Querétaro in Mexico as Director of Estudio Lamela. He also co-designed the Tijuana Airport expansion with the studio, which received the Silver Medal at the 2022 Architecture Biennale.
Loreta Castro Reguera
Loreta Castro Reguera studied architecture at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) and the Accademia di Architettura di Mendrisio, and holds a Master in Urban Design from Harvard GSD. Her research on water and design earned her the Druker Traveling Fellowship and the regional and global Gold LafargeHolcim Award for Sustainable Construction, alongside Manuel Perló. A professor at the Faculty of Architecture at UNAM, she has also been invited to serve as a juror, curator, professor, and speaker worldwide, and has written for numerous journals and books.
She co-directs Taller Capital alongside José Pablo Ambrosi. Their work has been recognized with various national and international honors, including the 2022 MCHAP Emerge award, an award at the XII Ibero-American Architecture Biennale, and a Silver Medal at the XVII BANMX. Notably, they recently curated the RETROACTIVE exhibition at the 2022 Lisbon Architecture Triennale, Terra.
Mariano Efron
A graduate of the Faculty of Architecture, Design and Urbanism at the University of Buenos Aires, Mariano Efron is a partner at Architecturestudio, a practice founded in Paris in 1973 specializing in architecture, urban design, and interior design, with additional offices in Shanghai, Zug, and Abidjan. The firm's identity is rooted in collective design, promoting shared knowledge through dialogue and exchange to achieve a pluralistic understanding of the world. Reflecting architecture's commitment to society, Architecturestudio aims to create living spaces aligned with contemporary challenges, organizing events such as exhibitions in the Collateral Events of the Venice Biennale, as well as lectures and roundtables titled Mercredis d'AS and Matinées d'AS.
Among the firm's key projects are the European Parliament in Strasbourg, the Arab World Institute (Équerre d'Argent and Aga Khan Award), the restructuring of the Jussieu Campus, the Auditorium of the Maison de la Radio in Paris, the National Theatre of Bahrain (USITT Architecture Award), the Jinan Cultural Center, the Parc Marianne Urban Project in Montpellier, and the Summers Building in Buenos Aires (AFEX Grand Prix).
Anayeli Tapia
Based in Mexico City, Anayeli Tapia is an industrial designer with a master's degree in Marketing. She is currently the Marketing Manager for Latin America at Kuraray's Advanced Interlayer Solutions division, where she collaborates with architects, designers, and engineers to select the most suitable laminated glass interlayers based on their project needs and specifications.
César Eloy Pérez Mercado
An architecture graduate from the Universidad de Guadalajara, César Eloy Pérez Mercado is a founding partner and Executive Director of Technotense and holds a Master in Lightweight Structures from the Technical University of Vienna. With over 15 years of experience in the design, manufacture, and installation of tensile structures, he has received 18 awards from the ATA (Advanced Textiles Association) and the IAA (International Achievement Awards) for works including the Palacio de Arte (Morelia, Mexico), the Estadio Único Madre de Ciudades (Santiago del Estero, Argentina), and Oxigeno Human Playground (San José, Costa Rica).
Antai Ramos Stevens
Antai Ramos Stevens is a chemical engineer and has been the founder and manager of Shelter Materials and Systems since 2016, a company dedicated to the representation, sales, and specification of sustainable building envelope materials such as Rockwool, GAF, Atlas Roofing, Kemper System, and Logistics Lighting. She is a LEED Green Associate certified by the USGBC and a Registered Roof Observer (RRO) certified by the IIBEC (International Institute of Building Enclosure Consultants).
Martín Ferreyra
Drawing on his experience in working at heights and construction, Martín Ferreyra has been interested in rope access techniques since the beginning of his career, dedicating much of his professional life to honing his skills and knowledge in this field. After completing several rope access courses and earning certifications including SPRAT, PERU-UP, and PEIAC, he founded his own company in 2010 under the name Alpinismo Industrial.
Based in Argentina with operations in Uruguay, Alpinismo Industrial specializes in the installation and assembly of pressure-equalized facades and joinery, applying comprehensive safety practices for working at heights. In addition to serving as CEO and founder, Ferreyra is an advocate for education and professional development in his field. He has participated in numerous seminars and conferences and has shared his knowledge and experience through courses and workshops, contributing to the facade assembly and construction industries in Argentina and Uruguay.
This article was written by Agustina Iñiguez. The translation is powered by AI.
