Olga Mesa and Nathan Fash – “Performance2”
January 13 | 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm
topic
Performance2
abstract
Mesa and Fash will present their approach to dynamic building skins called Performance2, a lens which pairs the social, cultural, and communicative forms of performance with quantifiable characteristics such as heat transfer, structural integrity, and energy use. Dynamic building skins as well as kinetic components at various scales and applications that take advantage of material properties and geometric principles will be presented to illustrate their perspective. Their work points towards the design of building skins that promote a deeper understanding and appreciation of our environment, where building skins are conceived as mediators that establish meaningful connections with our context instead of separating us from it.
date
Tuesday, 13 January 2026 | 17:30 – 19:00 p.m..
This lecture is part of the AdvanceAEC partner seminar series. Please register or log-in to your account to access the event credentials.
bio
Olga Mesa and Nathan Fash are Associate Professors of Architecture at Roger Williams University and co-founders of Nuvola Studio, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization with a mission to leverage research, architectural design, construction, and material innovation to enhance education, the environment, culture, and communities. Their work in architectural design and architectural heritage as well as their research on dynamic building skins, material systems and innovative fabrication techniques has been the subject of numerous international conference presentations, publications, and workshops in the United States, Germany, Austria, Mexico, Colombia, Switzerland, Italy, and Singapore.
Nathan holds a BA and BFA from Tufts University and a Master of Architecture degree with Distinction from the Harvard Graduate School of Design, and was awarded the Henry Adams Medal for design excellence. He is a registered architect and construction supervisor and has practiced in the United States and internationally.
Olga is a co-director of Architecture at Roger Williams University and has practiced professionally in the United States since 2000. She earned a Master of Design Studies in Technology with Distinction from Harvard Graduate School of Design, receiving the Daniel Schodek Award for Technology and Sustainability. She holds a Bachelor of Architecture from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), receiving the AIA Henry Adams Gold Medal for design excellence.