[soma: sentient body]
soma is an Austrian practice run by Stefan Rutzinger and Kristina Schinegger. soma has been working on a wide range of international projects, from implementation of innovative cultural buildings to award winning competition entries, from urban master planning and social housing to exhibition design and installations. In addition to the Theme Pavilion for the Expo 2012 Yeosu in South Korea, completed projects include the travelling Art Pavilion for the Salzburg Biennale and the Austrian headquarter for the German firm TECE. Stefan Rutzinger and Kristina Schinegger work together since 2007, from 2009 until 2016 Martin Rutzinger and Günther Weber have been partners at soma ZT GmbH.
soma combines highest aspirations and demands towards design and innovation with experience in feasible construction of advanced and complex structures and their sustainable implementation. The team’s work has won numerous prizes in international competitions and has been featured in significant exhibitions such as the Venice Architecture Biennale 2010, Archilab 2013, the Museum for Applied Arts in Vienna or the Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2019.
photo credit: Andreas Friedle
STEFAN RUTZINGER (Univ.-Prof. Mag. Arch, ZT) is a registered architect and founder and principal of soma. He studied architecture at the University of Innsbruck, the University of Applied Arts Vienna and the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL London. In 2016 he was appointed as professor for structure and design at the University of Innsbruck.
Prior to this position he was an interimistic professor at the Academy of Fine Arts, Munich and a guest professor at the Aacdemy of Fine Arts in Vienna. He was a teaching fellow at UCL, Bartlett School of Architecture where he ran together with Kristina Schinegger the MArch Unit 15 (RIBA II). Stefan Rutzinger won several awards and recognition, such as the Austrian Baupreis 2006, the recognition award for experimental tendencies in Architecture 2008 by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Arts and Education, the MAK Schindler scholarship, and the Recognition Award by the Federal State of Tyrol.
KRISTINA SCHINEGGER (Univ.-Prof. Mag.arch.) is founder and principal of soma. She studied architecture at the University of Applied Arts Vienna and the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL London. She is a professor for structure and design and Dean of Studies at University of Innsbruck. Prior to this position she was a teaching fellow at the Bartlett School of Architecture, where she ran MArch Unit 15 (RIBA Part II) together with Stefan Rutzinger. From 2007 until 2016 she was teaching at the TU Vienna as an assistant professor at the department for architecture theory. She won several awards and recognition, such as the Austrian Baupreis 2005, the recognition award for experimental tendencies 2006 in Architecture by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Arts and Education, the MAK Schindler scholarship, and the START Award by the BMUKK.
TEAM MEMBERS SINCE 2007
Martina Johanna Lesjak / Alexander Matl / Hannes Tallafuss / Adrian Pickl-Herk / Rudolf Pöschl / Xavier Delanoue / Simon Hirtz / Konrad Zellner / Andreas Koerner / Rangel Karaivanov / Christiane Hütter / Andreas Ettmayer / Moritz Hanshans / Verena Lihl / Thomas Buseck / Melina Angelina Girardi / Anna Csefalvav / Christoph Müller / Sarah Schurian / Alexander Nanu / Raphaela Bacher / Ondrej Kloub / Joao Azougado / Kadri Tamre / Johan Tali / Miro Straka / Stefan Ritter / Sophie Luger / Sibilla Bonfanti / Anna Flavia Giammanco / Daniel Bolojan / Magdalena Zeller / Lukas Galehr / Christoph Treberspurg / Alice Mayer / Victorie Senesova / Karin Dobbler / Herwig Scherabon / Cecilia Sannella / Giuseppe Molteni / Kathrin Dörfler / Nadine Rössler / Jeanine Wörndl / Raimund Krenmüller / Judith Weissinger / Michaela Haussteiner
AWARDS AND NOMINATIONS
Nomination for European Union Prize for Architecture - Mies van der Rohe Award 2013
Architecture Recognition Award by the Country Salzburg, 2012
Nomination for Media Architecture Biennale Award (among 25 finalists), 2012
Nomination for the KATERVA Sustainability Award, 2012
Nomination for the Austrian Building Award, 2012
Promotion Award for Architecture by the City of Vienna, 2011
START-Award by the Austrian Federal Ministry for Education, Arts and Culture, 2010
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
Vienna Art for Art's Sake, Winterpalais Museum Belvedere, Vienna (AT), 2015
APPLIED ARTS NOW. soma architecture - Immanent Elasticity, Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna (AT), 2014
Archilab 2013, FRAC Center, Orleans (FR), 2013
Material World Exhibition, Danish Architecture Center, Copenhagen (DK), 2012
Future Building Solutions from Austria, Seoul, Cheonan, Ansan, Gwangju, Yeosu (KR), 2011
World Architecture Festival, Advantage Austria Lounge, Barcelona (ES), 2011
Austria under Construction, Architecture Biennale Venice (IT), 2010
How does it make you feel?, Künstlerhaus Salzburg (AT), 2010
New Frontiers, Design Factory Bratislava (SK), 2010; Zumtobel Vienna (AT), 2010
Yo.V.A. 3 / Young Viennese Architects, Project Space, Kunsthalle Vienna (AT), 2010
Mediaarchitecture Biennale 2010, Exhibition and Conference, Künstlerhaus Vienna (AT), 2010
SELECTED LECTURES & CONFERENCES
Archilab Symposium 2013, FRAC Center, Orleans (FR), 2013
Evocative Formations, Changwon University (KR), 2012
Evocative Formations, Low Carbon Green Construction Technology Forum, AT Center Seoul (KR), 2012
Concrete Day, Vienna (AT) — invited speaker, 2012
Adaptive Architecture Conference, London (GB) — speaker, 2011
Lecture at the University Innsbruck (AT), 2011
Lecture UCLA, Los Angeles (US), 2011
WAF, World Architecture Festival, Barcelona (ES) — invited speaker, 2011
Design Modelling Symposium Berlin (DE) — speaker, 2011
Lecture at OHM University Nuremberg (DE), 2011
Lecture at Academy of Fine Arts Munich (DE), 2011
Vienna Architecture Conference, University of Applied Arts Vienna (AT) — invited speaker, 2010
Lecture Series: Young Viennese Architects, project space Karlsplatz , Vienna (AT), 2010
Lecture Series: Architecture in progress, Wiesner Hager, Vienna (AT), 2010