Hi everybody! This is my first ever post in a blog, so wish me luck and let’s get started!
Let me introduce myself first. My name is Felipe and I’m from Zaragoza, in Spain. I got my masters in 2019 and started working in Barcelona.
Some time after that, I felt that I wanted to have an experience abroad and test me in other kind of studios. So that’s why during the pandemic, where we all had a lot of time to stop and think, I applied for one of Arquia Foundation fellowships. Those fellowships bring Spanish and Portuguese architecture students and recently graduated architects, as was my case, the opportunity to be part of some of the most renowned studios in Spain and across Europe. In 2020 there was a novelty: it was the first time they also included two American destinations in New York City in partnership with Architect-US. So, among some European studios which were offered, I also picked Diller Scofidio + Renfro in New York City.
One random day there was a mail in my inbox that shocked me. Diller Scofidio + Renfro were interested in my profile and wanted to interview me! After the nerves, the interview, and almost two months the big news arrived, I was selected for the fellowship to work at DS+R! That’s when I first met Patricia and Sonia from Architect-US, that along with Maria from the Arquia Foundation and the Spain-US Chamber of Commerce helped and assisted me during this very long trip to get the visa.
It was not easy at all for any of us. Covid-19, travel bans, delays at the Embassy… it took us almost a (sometimes frustrating) year and a half with comings and goings, zoom calls, daily website checks and recommendation letters until finally, in November, the moment arrived and I got my visa approved.
So, after all the hard work and the uncertain situation we had to deal with, in December I was able to start working in Diller Scofidio + Renfro from New York.
Let’s go!
