ABOUT US

SELF Arquitectura is an architectural agency that operates internationally in Spain, Italy and Russia.
Directed by Giacomo Delbene and Massimiliano Giberti, together with Marika Roccabruna and Stefano Bai, SELF offers the skills and the experience achieved by the partners during over twenty years of intense professional and research activity. The design of top projects at different scales, the participation and the awards in several international competitions, as well as the direction of teaching and research programs within leader universities, determine a specific approach to the profession. Being pragmatically anchored to the physical nature of the site and to the client’s inputs, engines of the project are the objective spatial quality of the proposed solutions, their economic, environmental and social sustainability, and the integration of the best tools, materials and methodologies that the RESEARCH has to offer to the MARKET.
The configuration of the design, communicative, constructive and maintenance processes into elements able to enhance the potential value of any commission enforces a methodology focused on the strategic capitalization of the resources.
Thus, reacting to the context, DESIGN is flexible to evolve over the time, accepting future requirements coming from the clients, as well as integrating new opportunities that the technological progress will make available. Keeping a positive and constructively critical attitude towards the Contemporary Architecture and the Real Estate Market, SELF turns any project into a challenging opportunity of RESEARCH and INNOVATION, gathering into the same evolutionary path different professional modalities, from direct commissions, to competitions, seminars, teaching and publishing.
DESIGN is always customized to client expectations, integrating the most convenient and appropriate technologic solutions for environmental and energetic sustainability. The teaching and publishing activities, fundamental tools in order to amplify and share the theoretical content of the adopted solutions, are key-elements for synthesizing the methodological and professional evolution, continuously and repeatedly dealing with new horizons and arguments.

Selected Awards:

Winner project in the International Competition fot an Innovation Incubator (Ville Verte de Benguerir, Morocco, 2019, 38.203 m2)
Winner project in the International Restricted Competition for the Rublyovo Arkhangelskoye Masterplan (Moscow, Russia, 2018, 464 ha)
Winner project in the International Competition for the Pisa Santa Chiara Transformation Plan (Pisa, Italy, 2017, 11 ha)
Winner project in the International Restricted Competition for the Prat Nord District (El Prat de Llobregat, Spain, 2009, 1.600.000 m2)
Winner project in the International Competition for the restoration of Villa Bombrini (Genoa, Italy, 2005, 230.000 m2)
Winner project in the International ANAS Competition for an archeological museum along the highway (Reggio Calabria, Italy, 2006, 15.000 m2)
Winner project in the INCASOL Restricted Competition for a 64 housing units (Barcelona, Spain, 2005, 6.250 m2)
Winner project in the International Competition for a municipal offices building (Novi Ligure, Italy, 2003, 2.600 m2)
Winner project in the International Competition for the new Deiva Marina waterfront (La Spezia, Italy, 2002, 21.000 m2)
Winner project in the International Competition for the transformation of Corso Sardegna General Market (Genoa, Italy, 2001, 42.000 m2)

Selected Projects:

Lainate C House (300 m2. Lainate, Italy, 2018)
White House (360 m2, Origgio, Italy, 2017)
House in MilanoSesto (21.500 m2, Sesto San Giovanni, Italy, 2017)
Planta (13.000 m2, Menarguens, Spain, 2014)
Favelas restoration in Rio de Janeiro (120.000 m2. Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. 2012)
Domus degli Affreschi green roof (1.600 m2. Luni, Italy, 2011)
Tripoli Masterplan (19 ha. Tripoli, Libia, 2011)
Prat Nord Masterplan (1.600.000 m2. El Prat de Llobregat, Spain 2010)
Neverland (9.500 m2, Afsluitdijk, The Netherlands, 2009)
Extension of Perfetti factory (12.985 m2. Lainate, Italy. 2009)
Cervoles House (320 m2, La Pobla de Cervoles, Spain, 2009)
Social housing in the Mina (6.205 m2. Barcelona, Spain. 2006)
Four Elements Park (350 ha. Campocatino, Italy. 2006)
l’Ice-Loop Hotel (2.980 m2, Campocatino, Italy, 2005)
Urban restoration of Palazzo del Principe Area (160.000 m2. Genoa, Italy.2000)

Selected Books:

“ArchiDisney. Architettura, città, design nell’arte di Floyd Gottfredson” (Odoya, Bolonia 2019)
“La città (con)divisa. Manuale di convivenza urbana nell’epoca del conflitto” (Sagep, Genoa 2018)
“Made in GOA. Guida alla città ibrida” (Sagep, Genoa 2017)
“La casa è un sogno” (Sagep, Genoa 2017)
“Compendio di anatomia per progettisti” (Quodlibet, Macerata 2014)
“Habitar a Comunidade” (Forma, Poggibonsi 2012)
“Piccolo Manuale d’uso per l’architettura contemporanea” (22 Publishing, Milano 2012)
“ARCHEONET architettura, paesaggio, turismo” (22 Publishing, Milano 2011)
“Exploring Conteporary aGE” (LISt Actar, Barcelona 2010)
“Public, Private, Ephemeral. Ceramics in Architecture” (Ascer, Barcelona, 2008)
“Barcelona, Contemporary Transformations” (Meltemi, Roma 2007)
“Proyecto BCN” (Actar/ Ajuntament de Barcelona, Barcelona 2007)
”Four Elements: a Landscape project between Art and Nature” (Actar, Barcelona, 2006)
“Geno(v)a, developing & re-booting a waterfront city“ (NAi Publishers, Rotterdam 2003)

Projects

Awards

Collaborators

Creative ideas

SELF operates in different fields. Here are some links to research groups of which the partners of SELF are part of, as well as sites dedicated to teaching practice we applied at the University of Genoa and Milan.

All the steps I’ve taken
in my life brought me here,
now.

Alberto Garutti.

GIACOMO DELBENE

PARTNER ARCHITECT

Giacomo Delbene

PARTNER ARCHITECT AND PHD.

Ending the architectural career in Barcelona Escola Tècnica Superior de Arquitectura, he achieved in 1999 the title of Architect with honorable mention, discussing a project on the transformation of Genoa’s Waterfront.

The project was acquired by the City and become the International Architectural Competition “Ponte Parodi and the City of Genoa”. He contributed in the writing competition’s rules and he followed all the technical process.

In 2005 he got the PhD Diploma in “Services for Transports and Logistics Systems“, program promoted by the University of Genoa – Faculties of Architecture, Transport Engineering, Law and Economic Studies -, discussing the thesis “Next Generation Infrastructures: Hybrid infrastructures and functional programs. Reading and Design in the Contemporary Territory”.

In 1999, he is founder with Massimiliano Giberti of TRAIN 01 Design Platform.

In 2001, he founded Liguria Spin Off, a platform for design companies focused on research and interchange between professionals and university.

In 2008, he founded in Barcelona SELF ARQUITECTURA.

He is registered to the Genoa Architectural Association and to the Catalan Architectural Association (COAC).

Since 2000, he has been developing research activity, collaborating with several universities and being member of the permanent ILA&UD staff. He has been teaching in Genoa University, Pole-Europe courses, ESARQ-UIC, IED Barcelona, UPC, NDU Beirut, Pescara University, etc.

During several years, he has been titular professor of the course “Architectural Infrastructures and Landscape” in the Polytechnic University of Milan

With the Municipality of Barcelona, he focused on city branding topics, public spaces management and mass events strategic planning. With AFH Spain, UN-Habitat and Fundació G3T he researched on projects for African and sub-tropical countries.

He participated in many architectural and planning competitions, designing proposals and strategies expliciting the theoretical approach of the groups of which he was member.

He developed an intense editorial activity, publishing monographic texts in Italy, Holland and Spain

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MASSIMILIANO GIBERTI

PARTNER ARCHITECT

Massimiliano Giberti

PARTNER ARCHITECT AND PROFESSOR OF ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN AT THE UNIVERSITY OF GENOA.

Since 1999, he combines design and research activity in the fields of architecture and urban design.
After completing his academic career with a period of study at the Ecole d’Architecture de Paris Belleville, he holds a scholarship in the course of Problems and Methods in Architectural Design at the Faculty of Architecture in Genoa, where he earned the PhD title with a thesis entitled “Body, Space, Architecture”, in 2003. Along with Giacomo Delbene he founded the design studio Train01, with whom, between 2000 and 2004, has won several international competitions, gaining credit as one of the youngest firms emerging in the Italian panorama.

From 2004 to 2009 he is junior partner and coordinator of the Genoa agency of Archea associati, with which he won numerous international competitions. His projects have been published in AREA, DOMUS, ABITARE, MATERIA and several monographs.

Since 2005 he is Assistant Professor at the Department of Sciences for Architecture, Polytechnic School of Genoa, where, from 2012, is also a member of the faculty PhD School.

He has published essays and articles for AREA MATERIA (Il Sole 24 Ore publisher) PARAMETRO; in 2009-2013 he worked with RCS to the Casamica magazine and the web portal AtCasa. From 2014 he is editor of the Elledecor.it web magazine, published by Hearst. He has edited several books about the topics of housing and reuse of contemporary landscapes. He has coordinated research about weak urban fabrics in Tripoli (Libya), Beijing, Rio de Janeiro, Accra. He participated in numerous international workshops and conferences, including the ILA&UD, COP 15, Rio +20. Since 2011 he is member of the UIA work program, Architecture for a Sustainable Future.

Since 2012 he is member of a network of Italian researchers who participate in calls for international research, conferences and workshops, collective publications on the topics of urban regeneration and new approaches to contemporary design.

In 2014, is a partner, with Giacomo Delbene, of Self arquitectura.

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MARIKA ROCCABRUNA

PARTNER ARCHITECT

Marika Roccabruna

PARTNER ARCHITECT.

After having developed his architectural training within the Universities of Genoa and Oulu Finland, she has a longstanding experience in architectural design at various stages, within several international design projects; including Train01, with which she participated in various architectural competitions between 2002 and 2004, and Studio Archea Associati, with whom she collaborated between 2004 and 2010 for the coordination of the Genoa office and as a significant project and significant work in Italy and abroad.

Since 2005 she has been engaged in study and research with particular attention in the analysis of large urban organisms: from the masterplan to the complex infrastructural systems.

In the Faculty of Architecture of Genoa she has collaborated teaching inside many design laboratories and for staging various exhibitions, conferences and workshops of architecture.

In 2007 she is a member of the University’s Research Project: The island as a frontier, a project of the Mediterranean new geography – Lampedusa Island.

She was also titular professor for several years of the the course “Masterplan as a tool for controlling urban transformations”, in 2011 of the official courses : “Architectural Composition for Urban Design” and “The solid city’s architecture” ; in 2016 of the official course: “Practices and trends of contemporary architecture”.

She published essays papers for the journal MATERIA (Il Sole 24 Ore publisher. Milan ) and within the volume “Complex Infrastructure Systems and New Urban Identity” (Alinea Publishing, Florence). She also curated the “KITCHEN” monograph of the Architecture tools serie (Federico Motta publisher. Milan).

At the present, is a partner, with Giacomo Delbene, Massimiliano Giberti and Andrea Zampichelli of Self arquitectura.

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STEFANO BAI

PARTNER ARCHITECT

Stefano Bai

PARTNER ARCHITECT.

Stefano graduated in Architecture from the University of Genoa in 2012.

In 2013 he moved to China, Shanghai, where he became an integral part of a distinguished atelier.

His expertise primarily centered on interior design, spanning a diverse array of projects including offices, retail spaces, luxurious residences, automotive showrooms, and art galleries.

During this time, Stefano collaborated closely with famous Italian brands such as Maserati, Pirelli, and Ducati, contributing to the creation of their Asian headquarters.

In 2024 Stefano moved back to Genova, where he joined Self Architecture as a partner.

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CHIARA TASSANO

STAFF ARCHITECT

Chiara Tassano

ARCHITECT.

Born in Genoa, she attended the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Genoa.

During her Master, she moved to Belgium, for six months, attending the Faculty of Architecture Ku Leuven, an international community founded on innovative research, obtaining the opportunity to deepen her interest in the field of architectural composition through workshops and conferences.Back in Italy, followed by professors Arch. Massimiliano Giberti and Arch. Laura Arrighi, she graduated with honors with the Thesis “The curtain as a spatial compositional tool,” analyzing and promoting the textile element as an opportunity to rethink a neutral and flexible home, in the vision in which the inhabitant, becomes an active protagonist and determines the possibility of configuration of its own space able to adapt to changes and needs.Always interested in the world of research on the different forms of use of interior spaces, since 2023, she has the opportunity to work as an assistant to Prof. Arch. Laura Arrighi in the Interior Design course of Design’s Bachelor at the University of Genoa.

After finishing her studies, she immediately began working at SELF Arquitectura where she could experiment and concretize, for the first time, the notions learned in the previous years in anticipation of obtaining her license to practice as an architect.

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JOSEFINA MONTELEONE

STAFF ARCHITECT

Josefina Monteleone

ARCHITECT.

Josefina Monteleone is a young argentinian architect, holding a degree in Architecture and Urban Planning from the Universidad Nacional del Nordeste in Argentina. She enriched her expertise through a student exchange program at “Universidad La Sapienza” in Rome.

She initiated her career as a project manager at a construction company and showcased proficiency in architectural design, technical management, and logistics. Concurrently, she established her own architecture studio, specializing in renovations and expansions.

With years of experience in the construction industry, Josefina opted to relocate to Italy in pursuit of advancing her professional career, steadfastly committed to ongoing professional development.

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