CARLA ALCALÀ BADIAS
Her practice encompasses a broad spectrum of disciplines, whether developing commercial or self-initiated projects. Recently, she received the prestigious Bio Art and Design Award 2024. Throughout her career, she has worked for award-winning design studios such as MUT Design and Closca. Carla was awarded the Medialab Matadero 2022-23 research grant, and in 2023, she served as an artist-in-residence at Domaine de Boisbuchet (France), supported by Acción Cultural Española. Her projects have been exhibited at internationally recognized events such as Dutch Design Week and Valencia Design Fest, and have been featured in design and contemporary culture magazines such as DAMN Magazine.
Bachelor in Industrial Design and Product Development, CEU Cardenal Herrera, Valencia (ES), Summa Cum Laude.
2015-19
Product, space and furniture designer, MUT design, Valencia (ES).
Design Researcher (R+D), Biochar as a design material, Domaine de Boisbuchet (FR), Project funded by Acción Cultural Española (AC/E).
Design Research (R+D), Project Development within the Annual Program of Situated Research Residencies at Medialab Matadero (ES), Financially supported by Madrid Destino Culture Tourism and Business, S.A.
Production & development expert, workshop staff member, Domaine de Boisbuchet (FR).
Graphic Design and Art Direction, Internship, Closca Design, Valencia (ES).
Furniture and Product Design, Internship, Yonoh Studio, Valencia (ES).
2021-23
2023
2022-23
2023
2019
2018
Distributed Design Mobility Scheme Prize 2023-24.Co-funded by the EU.
Creative Exchange Residency for Craft Practitioners 2023-25 (WCCE). Co-funded by the EU.
Artistic residency at Domaine de Boisbuchet, Funded by Acción Cultural Española AC/E, May-July.
Research residency at Medialab Matadero, Madrid (ES). April 22-April 23, Funded by Madrid Destino Cultura Turismo y Negocio, S.A.
Academic grant at The New Centre for Research and Practice, 4 ECTS seminar.
Extraordinary End-of-career Award for the Best Academic Record in Engineering and Architecture 2019. CEU Cardenal Herrera University, Valencia.
2024
2024
2023
2022-23
2022
2019
Post-Carbon Alchemy, (group), Material District Utrecht 2024.
Wet-Crypto Myths (solo), La Hoja, Nave 0, Matadero Madrid.
Twisting & Twining (group), Mut Design Studio, València Design Fest 22.
Design Végétal (group), Domaine de Boisbuchet, France Design Week.
Private_Eye_Butler_Spy (group),ARCAM Architecture Centre Amsterdam, May - June.
Graduation Show 2021 Design Academy Eindhoven, Dutch Design Week 2021.
The Object is Absent (group), MU Space, Eindhoven (NL). Dutch Design Week 2020.
2024
2023
2022
2022
2022
2021
2021
Biochar (online publication), Future Materials Bank (Jan van Eyck Academie).
Public presentation Wet-Crypto Myths and conversation with Ross McElwain, 26 May, Nave 0, Matadero.
Digital Home Myth-Making (article), In DAMN°82: Radical Domesticity.
Reencantar a las Bestias, interview, In Radio 3 (RTVE).
Death to algorithms, long live the witches! (article). Dutch Design Week 2021.
2023
2023
2022
2022
2021
Theoretical-practical seminar Daemon&Discord: Anatomy of the DAO, With Jay Springet & Ross McElwain, The New Centre for Research and Practice.
Workshop with Lex Pott. Domaine de Boisbuchet (FR).
Textile design project at Ziguinchor school, Senegal. Social design project Free Design Bank.
2022-23
2018
2019
Autocad
Keyshot / V-Ray
Adobe Creative Suite
Stability AI / Midjourney
MS Office
Winner of the BAD Award 2024. More information coming soon.
Exhibition, Research
Ongoing
Inspired by the principles of traditional cob construction, this is a newly crafted material made primarily of biochar, along with a mixture of mud and straw. As the resulting pieces are unfired, they can be reintegrated into the soil once their purpose has been fulfilled.
AC/E Cultura Residency
Product, Research
2023
Pirographic curves through the magic of hand-tufting. GIRO’s design is based on a succession of mathematical curves which, thanks to a slight variation in their shapes, generate the optical illusion of a tube rolled up on itself.
Archiproduct Design Award
Product
2023
In this speculative domestic environment, the smart speaker Alexa embodies a xenofeminist character inspired by the goddess Vesta, while its connected smart devices transform into ritual objects. These objects execute daily routines that infiltrate dysfunctional data into the cloud.
Graduation Project
Exhibition, Research
2021
A collection of functional sculptures made from vernacular recycled materials. The tiles and bricks (’teules i maons’) were recovered from demolition sites in different parts of the city.
Product
2019
The starting point of the collection was Ames’s exceptional fabrics used in the manufacture of hammocks. We have developed a way of weaving in which by just modifying one thread in the weft, we managed to create different nuances of colour and levels of depth.
Product
2023
Summer workshop at Boisbuchet experimenting with rattan canes and leftovers provided by Expormim. We focused on rattan’s properties and explored all the different ways and possibilities to work with it, pushing it to its limits.
Education, Exhibition
2022
Ongoing research project exploring the potential of reduced black ceramics for application in Microbial Electrochemical Tecnologies (METs).
Medialab Matadero Grant
Research
2023
Ongoing material research on the properties of reduced black ceramics.
Supported by WCC and UPV
Research
2023
The Home, a Mythopoeia, explores the gendered aspect of smart home devices through a theater script co-written in conversation with the smart speaker Alexa and a critical analysis of the script. Featured in DAMNº82 SUMMER 2022.
MA thesis
Research, Publication
2021