Meritxell Inaraja Genís

Meritxell Inaraja Genís, (February 26, 1968), is a Catalan architect. Born in Vic (Osona, Barcelona), Inaraja studied at the Higher Technical School of Architecture of Barcelona (ETSAB). Her style is characterized by compelling exteriors and functional interiors. Inaraja has garnered important commissions for the restoration of historical and industrial complexes and for the design of newly-constructed public facilities and residential buildings.
== Biography ==
Inaraja graduated in Architecture from the Technical School of Architecture of Barcelona, Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC), in 1994. A year later she earned a postgraduate degree in Museology and Design at UPC.
Inaraja is a disciple of the architect Jordi Garcés. For a long time, she worked on projects with Garcés as well as her own architecture practice, located in Vic’s main square, which she founded in 1995. She collaborated with Garcés on the expansion of the Picasso Museum in Barcelona, the Egyptian Museum, the Francisco Godia Foundation (the modernist Casa Garriga Nogués, current headquarters in Barcelona of the Mapfre Foundation) and an unconventional housing project in the 22@ neighborhood of Barcelona. This professional relationship continued through 2011, when Inaraja and Garcés collaborated on a new residential construction project in Piera, Barcelona. 
Inaraja's style is defined by a commitment to functionality, a deep respect for the environment and the constant presence of light. Although her new construction buildings and restoration projects differ from one another, they share a common denominator: the search for and use of materials, drawn from historical context and/or the physical environment, that complement and improve the built spaces. In her renovation projects, she always strives for interiors that respect the building’s history but enhances them with contemporary elements to provide maximum usefulness and comfort. 
Noteworthy restoration projects include: the old coin factory “La Seca” which was transformed into a cultural complex; the walls of Vic; the Besora Castle; the Tossa de Montbuí Tower; the roof of the Sant Pere de Camprodón Monastery; an historic house in the medieval village of Montdragon (France). Recently, Inaraja won a competition for the rehabilitation of the Gavà Cooperators Union building, originally designed in 1936 by Josep Lluís Sert and Josep Torres Clavé.
Some of her more significant new construction projects are: the Garraf Regional Historical Archive; the Montsià Regional Historical Archive, the Ribera d'Ebre Regional Historical Archive, the Palafolls School of Music and Dance.
She also collaborated on the construction of the Lluís Llach Foundation’s Nelson Mandela Library in Palmarin, Senegal. Perhaps because she has worked on both public commissions as well as residential projects, often at the same time, the interiors of the public facilities she designs evoke the warmth and comfort of a home, while her newly-constructed residential buildings display the precision and excellence that characterize prestigious public works. Currently, her architecture studio is working on a number of residential building projects in Vic and Sitges, in the province of Barcelona.
== Public Organisations==
Year 	Role 	Institution
2015-2016	Member of the Executive Committee of Barcelona's Culture Council 	Culture Institue. Barcelona's City Council
2012 	Member of the Technical Commission of Cultural Heritage of Central Catalonia	Government of Catalonia
1995-2003	Member of the Board of Trustees of the Ancient City 	Vic's City Council
1994-1995	Employee of the Urban Project Department 	Barcelona's City Council
== References ==
== External Links ==
*Meritxell Inaraja Genís Official website
Category:1968 births
Category:Catalan architects
Category:People from Osona
Category:Polytechnic University of Catalonia alumni
Category:Architects
Category:Spanish architects
Category:Architecture of Spain