Maksymilian Benek

Graduate of the Faculty of Architecture at the Silesian University of Technology. As of 2019, I am a student at the Faculty of Architecture at the Silesian University of Technology and an active member of the LAB 60+ and Universal Design study circle.

As an open-minded and naturally curious person, I took it upon myself to use my time as an engineering student in a way that allowed me to educate myself and gain experience by traveling abroad. In my second year, I decided to apply for an Erasmus scholarship, which allowed me to spend a year studying and broadening my horizons at the University of Lisbon. The next step was the idea to send my portfolio to offices in Rotterdam, Copenhagen and Berlin. Shortly after returning from Portugal, I moved to Rotterdam and spent six months there working as an intern at Studio Abacaxi.

In my work, I try to experiment with different types of graphics, but more importantly, I look for solutions that are accessible to everyone, with an emphasis on the elderly and those with disabilities. In addition, the recent pandemic crisis has set an example that as a society we should be prepared for different variants of emergencies, which
reinforced my belief that sustainable and accessible architecture are issues we should focus on in particular.

The summer semester of 2021 was crucial for my college adventure so far - after six months in Rotterdam, I returned to university to close the chapter at the Silesian University of Technology. Thanks to the experience I gathered while working for Martine Duyvis, I decided to test my skills in two competitions - Lake Myvatn Community House in Iceland, the design of which I committed with two groupmates, and a competition for an art therapy center in Pleasington, UK, which I did on my own and handed in as my engineering project.

In addition to working on the competitions, the spring of 2021 was special because I decided to apply for a master's degree abroad. In April I learned that my efforts were successful and in September I will start a new adventure at Chalmers University in Gothenburg, Sweden.