Architecture & meditation

Ph.D blog by Mário Bruno Cruz Advisors: Jorge Cruz Pinto & Francisco Rebelo

Mário Bruno Cruz: Mário Bruno Pais Brandão Franco da Cruz is a Lisbon-based architect and FCT-funded PhD candidate at the Faculty of Architecture, University of Lisbon (FAUL), where he investigates religious and contemplative space through neuro-architecture, sacred geometry, and virtual-reality-supported perception studies. He holds a degree in Architecture (Urban Renewal, FA-UTL, 1993) and a Master’s in Translation/English Studies (NOVA FCSH, 2017) and has completed the curricular stage of the Architecture doctorate (2018–present). Between 1995 and 2000, he served as a technical assistant to architect Óscar Lopes, subsequently practicing independently until 2005; since then, he has combined research with freelance translation and teaching Portuguese. Recent publications analyze luminous performance in meditation rooms, color as an introspective device, and the use of VR to assess users’ spatial experience. His current interests encompass sacred-space preservation, phenomenology of perception, and digital tools for affective design. Cruz is a member-researcher of CIAUD, a registered architect in the Ordem dos Arquitectos, and the recipient of a competitive FCT doctoral scholarship awarded in 2024.

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