Sofia Boarino Architecture & Sound Art
Loto
sofiaboarino@gmail.com
Sofia Boarino is an architect, researcher & sound artist whose practice explores the relationships between sound, light, space and perception. Her work operates at the intersection of architecture, neuroscience and artistic research, investigating how invisible physical phenomena shape bodily experience and environmental awareness.
She received her Master’s degree in Architecture from the AAM–USI Accademia di Architettura di Mendrisio in 2020 with “Hit the Beat”, a project exploring architecture through musical and acoustic principles. The project was awarded the Swiss Engineering Ticino Prize in 2021 and exhibited at the Chiasso Cultural Centre. During her studies, she attended the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (PUCP) and specialised in acoustics under Professor Carlos Jimenez. Since 2017, Boarino has pursued interdisciplinary research between art and science, focusing on mechanical, biological and acoustic resonance in relation to spaces, landscapes and cities.
In 2018 she patented “Sounds of Etna”, an artistic-architectural project investigating infrasounds as a spatial and environmental medium. In 2019 she became a fellow of the MADWORKSHOP Foundation (Los Angeles), where she realised “Témenos", a perceptual pavilion combining sound, light and neuroscience research, forming a foundational pillar of her ongoing research on art and neuroarchitecture. Her work has been presented through lectures, performances and installations across Europe and internationally. In 2022 she lectured at the Acoustic Niche Workshop led by the Christophe Girot Chair at ETH Zurich and became a member of X=(T=E=N) Studio and a contributor to ANFA – Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture. In the same year, she performed at Raw Senses as part of Zurich Design Weeks and at Metareale Gallery during Milano Design Week. In 2023 her projects were published in several architectural journals and she was interviewed on The Grand Challengers podcast. She also performed at venues including Dynamo and the Songbird Festival in Davos, and Sofar Sound Zurich, and lectured in the Moving Boundaries neuroarchitecture course at Ca’ Foscari University in Venice. In 2024 she led with Valentina Rizzi an architectural workshop at the Simposio di Architettura e di Ecologia delle Relazioni in Montalcino and developed a sound design project for Giardino Villa Cappuccini Art Foundation.
In 2025 she exhibited and performed at Milano Design Week with Sensorial for Opendoor, and was selected to exhibit “Sound Greenfall” – a project on bioacoustics and neuroarchitecture – at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, curated by Carlo Ratti. Her work has been featured by international platforms including FRAME Magazine, e-flux, Espazium, Archinet, Elle Decor Italia and Il Giornale dell’Arte. The same year, she joined the Bauhaus Lab 2025 research residency at the Bauhaus Dessau Foundation, focusing on light and artistic creation. There she exhibited “Vocal Photosynthesis”, an experimental artwork investigating physical forces such as sound and light as perceptual interfaces. Alongside her artistic practice, she lectures internationally at institutions including ETH Zurich, IUAV Venice and PULSE 2025-GLSN India, and continues to develop performative and research-based projects, including inclusive infrasonic works engaging the deaf community. Currently she is also undertaking further research in collaboration with UCL - University College London.