Manuela Gatto Director Arch.Dip (Hons) MArch AA (Hons) ARB RIBA

Profile                                                                                                      Joining Zaha Hadid Architects in 2002, Manuela has worked on several of Zaha Hadid Architects’ seminal projects, creating innovative design solutions unique to the project’s local context. As a director, Manuela delivers award-winning architecture and is involved in all aspects of project management, from design and technical team management to contract administration. Manuela speaks five languages and takes an active role in the running of the studio, helping overseeing one of Zaha Hadid Architects main clusters.

Education & Teaching                                                                          Studying architecture at the Instituto Universitario di Architettura di Venezia, Manuela graduated with honours in 1998 and went on to receive her Masters of Architecture with distinction in 2002 from the Design Research Laboratory of the Architectural Association in London.

Manuela is a co-author of the book ‘Negotiate My Boundary! – Mass Customization and Responsive Environments’. Initially published by the Architectural Association and re-issued by Birkhaeser Verlag, the book calls for new forms of architecture amid changing social structures and cultural conditions.

With her extensive experience delivering transformational architecture, Manuela has taught at the IUAV in Venice and the Architectural Association in London; and has been invited to lecture at numerous universities across the globe, including at the University of Hong Kong, La Sapienza University in Rome, IUAV University in Venice, Technion in Haifa at the Tel Aviv University, University of Leige in Belgium, University of Graz in Austria and the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia.

Project experience overview                                                            Since joining the practice, Manuela has held a leading role on several of Zaha Hadid Architects’ projects including the Zaragoza Bridge Pavilion and the Zorrozaurre Masterplan in Bilbao; Sky SOHO in Shanghai; and the BMW Central Building in Leipzig. She also served as a co-director of the Sberbank Techopark in Moscow. She led the design team of winning competition entries for Leeza SOHO in Beijing that incorporates the world’s tallest atrium and the Danjiang Bridge in Taipei which upon completion will be the world’s longest single-tower asymmetric cable-stayed bridge.

Manuela is currently project director on the Dnipro Metro stations in Ukraine, the Mercury Hotel and Residential Towers in Malta as well as several projects in China; including a 5* resort in Hainan, a cluster of supertall skyscrapers in Wuhan and the learning centre and foundation HQ of a blue chip company in Shenzhen.

With extensive experience encompassing a wide range of typologies and scale, Manuela is also one of Zaha Hadid Architects’ senior masterplan specialists, leading many of the studio’s recent large-scale urban regeneration designs.