Manifesto

Practising architecture and design today means tackling sustainability issues, whether environmental, social or economic. In our projects, we venture outside of our field of work to pinpoint each territory’s synergies and the opportunities it has to offer. This allows us to read a place’s complex mosaic as a whole and discover, for example, that entire regions function better without car traffic. The quest for a healthier, safer, greener world is the catalyst behind our design choices.

Our projects transcend style, typology, budget and scale. Each one unique in its own right, together they culminate in a design culture that reflects the collective to which they belong, made up of many different views of the world. The way of proceeding is always the same — thorough, curious, innovative — but the architectural result is always different. "What in the world did NOA create this time?" is the phrase we like to hear most.

The first decade of NOA saw the elaboration of many hotel projects, where we set a standard for hospitality architecture and design. Each project is a different journey and challenges us to imagine how hotels will evolve. Novel project designs are a staple in our portfolio and have always been well received. Today we create a range of worlds that are vastly distinct: from an oceanfront villa to a 3,000m-altitude viewing platform, from a cultural hub to an exhibition pavilion, and from a minimalist lamp to a redevelopment area masterplan.

Architecture is thought, representation and craftsmanship. In each of these elements, the most sophisticated techniques of the past merge with the boldest advances in technology and innovation. When we present a project, we create an immersive animation to instantaneously put the client inside the project and spark dialogue. When we design a shingle roof, we study how it was done 100 years ago. Experimentation is key.