Laura-India Garinois

Laura-India Garinois is a French-Greek designer and filmmaker currently pursuing a Master of Science in Architecture Studies (SMArchS AD) at MIT. She is particularly interested in the role of spatial research, design, and moving images, in addressing the commodification of nature and the lifespan of building materials.

Laura received her Bachelor of Architecture at Cornell University, where she was awarded the Charles Goodwin Sands Memorial Medal for her thesis Live Jacket. She has been recognized for her work through awards including the Sansusī Festival 2nd Place (Buildner, 2023), Editor’s Choice Award (Switch, 2019), Honorable Mention in Architectural Design (American Architecture Prize, 2017), Rug Your City 1st Place (Floorplans, 2016), Tokyo Vertical Cemetery Finalist (Arch Out Loud, 2016), The Bench 1st Place (MAKE, 2016). Her work has been supported by the Student Seed Grant (CAMIT, 2023), MISTI Chile Research Fellowship (2024), MISTI Ukraine (2023), 

She has also exhibited her work at ETH Zurich on two occasions (ETH with Ukraine—Exchanging Knowledge for a Sustainable and Resilient Future, 2024 and Doors to Ukraine: Designing for Urgency, 2023), Harvard Graduate School of Design (Forest Futures, 2024), Thessaloniki Design Week 2019, and contributed to the POOL Magazine Issue n.7 (UCLA, 2022). 

Laura is the co-founder of Superinfra, a design-research practice at the intersection of infrastructure, phenomenology, and ecological restoration.

 

 

Projects
Re(treat)
The modular food court is a glowing beacon for hungry festival goers. It remains materially and spatially connected with the forest it sits in, with an adaptable layout designed to ensure no trees are impacted by the structure. Prioritizing construction effectiveness and optimizing interior space utilization, the design is composed of lightweight modular wooden frames that can be assembled by a small team on or offsite. The structure is enclosed with breathable wooden slats, allowing for the free flow of air and light. During periods of non-use, benches find a secure place within the units, ensuring their longevity. The modular design allows for easy assembly and disassembly, allowing materials to be upcycled effectively throughout their use-span. As the needs of the festival change over time the food court can expand or move.
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Unearthed
As the world becomes increasingly automated, the architectural industry follows suit, leading us to completely defamiliarize ourselves with not only the source of our materials - but also the labor and energy they hold. Set in the cities of Drama and Athens in Greece, this film contrasts fast-paced, violent methods of extraction and manufacturing marble with slower ancient practices.
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Over/Under
Over-Under challenges the typical understanding of a public bench by turning inward. Alongside additional seating and bike storage created, the orientation of the seating dramatizes the ordinary, mundane dialogue between the street and the sidewalk, creating new opportunities for connectivity and conversation. A simple, welded structure made of circular and square steel sections support ten plywood steps, en face,while a translucent, acrylic screen anchors and embraces the whole. All materials for the bench were repurposed and recycled after its disassembly.

In collaboration with Liam Martin
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Air as Infrastructure
Air as Infrastructure is a program comprised of various infrastructural, botanical, and ecological information systems which aim to provide autonomous communication channels for protected territories and indigenous communities in the Tapajós National Forest. The scalable broadband communication network solution provides protective tools to the forest and its residents to monitor their land. It also enables the transaction of decolonized information between communities and territories, strengthening social organization and broadening access to internet-enabled devices within the forest.
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Publications

Contact

liag@mit.edu