Researcher biography

Dr Silvia Micheli (BArch Politecnico di Milano; PhD, IUAV, Venice) works in the field of contemporary design and history of architecture.

Dr Micheli's design research focuses on the productive city and how small-scale projects can enhance livability and resilience in our communities. In 2021, Silvia co-designed the Blue Bower Pavilion, receipient of the Crossroads Prize at the 2021 Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism as a manifesto of urban resilience during COVID19. In 2018, Silvia's co-designed the multi-awarded residential building One Room Tower, a demonstration project for the densification of the city.

Dr Silvia Micheli holds expertise in Italian architecture of the second hald of the 20th century and its global reach. She is currently co-writing a critical book on Italian postmodern architecture titled Paolo Portoghesi: Architecture between History, Politics and Media (Boomsbury, 2023). She co-authored the book Storia dell'architettura italiana 1985–2015 (Turin, 2013) and co-edited the volume Italia 60/70. Una stagione dell'architettura (Padua, 2010). Her co-edited book, Italy/Australia: Postmodern Architecture in Translation (Melbourne, 2018), reflects on the influence of Italian postmodern culture on Australian architecture.

Dr Micheli has also published widely on Finnish architecture: she has authored the book Erik Bryggman 1891–1955. Architettura Moderna in Finlandia (Rome, 2009) and contributed to the 2014 exhibition catalogue Alvar Aalto: Second Nature, Vitra, with an essay on the relationship between Aalto and Italy. Dr Micheli co-edited book, Aalto beyond Finland: Buildings, Projects and Network (Helsinki, 2018), which explores the global reach of the work of the Finnish architect Alvar Aalto. Her recent study on the impact of Aalto in Australia and Japan was presented at the 2021 DOCOMOMO conference in Tokyo.

Dr Micheli has had a range of international collaborations with academic and cultural institutions, such as the Alvar Aalto Foundation, Vitra Design Museum, Centre Pompidou, MAXXI Museum (Rome), Seoul National University, the Politecnico di Milano and University of Manchester. In 2019, Dr Micheli was Visiting Professor at the School of Art and Design at the Guangdong University of Technology, China.

Dr Micheli pursues research-led teaching, liaising with international academic institutions and architectural firms in Singapore, Hong Kong and Seoul. Since 2016, Silvia has assisted UQ Architecture to secure DFAT funding for mobility grants.

Dr Silvia Micheli is a registered architect (Board of Architects, Lecco, Italy) and member of the European Architectural History Network (EAHN) and the Society of Architectural Historians Australian and New Zealand (SAHANZ).

Areas of research