Matteo Ferraro
Matteo Ferraro began the 5-year architecture program in 2015. After his first year, he joined the Albert Dorman Honors College and began to pursue another bachelor’s degree for Civil Engineering. Simultaneously, Matteo became a Peer Mentor and developed a series of software tutorials implemented by NJIT for the first-year students. Over the summers, Matteo served as a Teaching Assistant for NJIT’s Pre-College Architecture Program. He had multiple international experiences including a study abroad in Siena, Italy and an honorable mention studio submission for the Schindler Global Awards in Mumbai, India. Matteo was involved in the 2019 Interschool Housing Studio and networked with students from NYIT, City College, Parsons, Pratt, and Cooper Union. Most recently, Matteo worked under Dr. Hyojin Kim researching Building Energy Modeling. He plans to pursue his final studio project based in Jersey City for Mana Contemporary after graduation. LinkedIn, Instagram, Email
Endless Poetics
Through a lens of Gaston Bachelard’s “The Poetics of Space,” the project envisioned Mana Contemporary as a campus for the public. Poetic themes of time and infinity are juxtaposed throughout the campus using Chirico and Kandinsky as inspiration. Considering the site’s significant history to Jersey City and its unique industrial landscape, a primary concern was to preserve the existing architecture. Public activation of the site and engagement with the surrounding community expanded through other educational organizations and Jersey City bikers, to re-establish the site as a nexus for the city. The development of a master plan for the campus physically manifested the foundation’s vision, “celebrating the creative process.” This included a re-orientation of the campus towards Senate Place and a re-programming of spaces to include an Architectural Center. Within the redesigned campus, vignettes illuminate the myriad of creative mediums at MANA.
