Carlo Scarpa hall
free, registration required until full
the conference will be held in Italian and English, with simultaneous interpretation.
8 Feb 2026 11.30 am
guided tours1+1The relational years
10 Feb 2026 06.00 pm
auteur conversationsCesare Pietroiusti with Francesco Stocchi
12 Feb 2026 05.00 pm
MAXXIperTUTTI1+1 sensitactile labs
13 Feb 2026 06.00 pm
books at MAXXIBattiato svelatocurated by Giorgio Calcara
Head of Learning, Community Engagement and Public Programs Architecture & Design Museum Helsinki. She holds a Master of Arts degree from Aalto University and has experience as a Visual Arts and Art History Teacher. Arja-Liisa has also completed a Specialist Qualification in Management, focusing on leading creative teams. She emphasizes the importance of promoting architectural literacy and design thinking, aiming to create accessible learning environments that help visitors appreciate the designed and built environment and its societal significance.
Javier Peña Ibáñez is an architect, curator, and educator based in Spain. He is the founder and director of Concéntrico, the International Festival of Architecture and Design in Logroño (since 2015). He also serves as Artistic Director of TAC! Festival of Urban Architecture, promoted by the Spanish Ministry of Housing and Fundación Arquia, with editions across different cities in Spain. In addition, he is Curator of Public Design Commissions at the Design Doha Biennial 2026. His work focuses on architecture, public space, and cultural innovation, with a strong emphasis on temporary design as a catalyst for urban transformation.
Creative mediator of Manifesta 16 Ruhr
From 1991 to 2015 he co-directed the BOPBAA Architecture studio. From 2016 to November 2023, he was general director of the strategic planning agency, Barcelona Regional. Currently, he is a founding member of the transnational agency URBAN FRONT, and Creative Mediator of the Nomadic Biennial of art “Manifesta 16” for 2026 in the Ruhr area. He has directed and curated several cultural activism programs such as “Barraca Barcelona” 2003, “APTM” 2005, “Arquitectos de Cabecera” 2014 and “Piso Piloto” 2015, which have investigated and exposed new solutions to the housing problem.
Head of Education at MAXXI
Marta Morelli is an art historian and a heritage educator. She obtained the Master of Arts in Learning and Visitor Studies in Museums and Galleries at School of Museum Studies of University of Leicester. She runs the Education Office at MAXXI – National Museum of 21st Century Arts (Rome) where she’s been working since 2005. She was a member of the Scientific Committee of Ludantia. I International Biennial on Architecture Education for Children and Youngsters (Pontevedra, Spain). She created Reading the Space. International Conference on Education through Architecture (first edition January 2019, second edition March 2021). Her research focuses on social inclusion, participatory planning and education through the built environment.
Cultural anthropologist specialising in museum studies and collections from North Africa. She has collaborated with various public and private institutions on participatory museography projects. She has conducted research on issues related to contested heritage and colonial memories. At the MUCIV-Museum of Civilisation, she is curator of the collections of the former Colonial Museum of Rome and head of Educational Services.
Commissioner of the British Pavilion at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition at La Biennale di Venezia
Director of Architecture Design and Fashion at the British Council and Commissioner of the British Pavilion at La Biennale di Venezia. She works to create collaborative and exchange opportunities for the global design sectors. She trained in architecture and has worked as an architect, urban designer and leading design advocate. She speaks and writes about the role of design in an increasingly complex world. Sevra has degrees from Yale University, Aalto University and the Architectural Association School of Architecture.
Architect and museum educator at the MAXXI Education Office, she is dedicated to researching, designing and conducting educational programmes aimed at different target audiences.
She contributes to participatory writing projects for the captions of the permanent collection, such as Kids Museum and Captions in the Collection; she participates in the development of the Spazio al Giallo! kit for the informed reading of architectural heritage; She coordinates interdisciplinary teams for the design of formats dedicated to image education and awareness of the gaze, and the experimental cycle Di spazio in spazio (From Space to Space), dedicated to the perception of peripersonal space and the construction of spatial and relational dynamics starting from early childhood. Finally, she participates in the definition of the three editions of Leggere lo spazio/Reading the Space. International conference on education in the built environment.
A new international forum for understanding how we live in, interpret and transform the places we live in.
The fourth edition of Reading Space explores practices, languages and methodologies that are currently rethinking architectural heritage, opening up a debate on how we activate, inhabit and transform it.
The aim is to broaden our perspective: from early childhood education about space to the perception of the body within museums; from the design of temporary installations in urban spaces to co-design processes involving communities and professionals in the reinterpretation of historical heritage; to international practices that renegotiate collections, meanings and narratives.
Launched in 2019 on the initiative of the Education Office, the conference began with a review of international best practices and the importance of developing awareness of built space.
In 2021, it explored methodologies capable of overcoming pre-established linguistic codes in search of new “spatial alphabets”, while the 2023 edition analysed the changes introduced during and after the pandemic, redefining the relationship between people and places.
This new event continues the journey, offering a space for discussion and experimentation on the many forms that spatial education can take today.
who should attend
The conference is aimed at architecture students and professionals, students of education and the humanities, teachers of all levels, cultural heritage educators, project managers, and more generally professionals in the cultural and educational sectors.
programme
9:45 am institutional greetings
Francesco Stocchi Artistic Director MAXXI
Lorenzo Busnengo Vice President Ordine degli Architetti di Roma e provincia
10 am introduction
Marta Morelli Head of Education Office MAXXI
10:15 am Space of exploration / education
Stefania Napolitano Architect and senior educator Education Office MAXXI
with
Arja-Liisa Kaasinen Head of Learning, Community Engagement and Public Programs Architecture & Design Museum Helsinki
11 am Space of imagination / action
Javier Peña Ibáñez Founder and Director of Concéntrico, Urban Innovation Laboratory
with
Josep Bohigas Creative Mediator of Manifesta 16. Ruhr
– break –
12 pm Space of reflection / negotiation
Rosa Anna Di Lella anthropologist MUCIV – Museo delle Civiltà
with
Sevra Davis Commissioner of the British Pavilion at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition at La Biennale di Venezia
12:45 pm Panel discussion
1:30 pm Conference concludes>
how to apply
To apply, please complete the form by 16 December 2025
Arja-Liisa Kaasinen
Javier Peña Ibáñez
Josep Bohigas
Marta Morelli
Rosa Anna Di Lella
Sevra Davis
Stefania Napolitano