Born in Sydney, Australia Carmen graduated with first class honours from Sydney’s University of Technology and worked for local practice Lippmann Associate Architects from 1998-2001. She worked in Rotterdam between 2001-2004 for the UK-based firm, Alsop Architects, before joining Mecanoo in 2004. In 2007, Carmen became Associate Architect.

Carmen exhibits a sensitivity in her design approach, enriched not only by the cross-cultural experience that she lends to the team, but also by her extensive experience successfully leading a wide variety of projects with complex programmes. Her work with Mecanoo includes the Library of Birmingham integrated with the REP Theatre; Eurojust; HOME, Art and Culture House, Manchester and the highly complex Manchester Engineering Campus Development. Most recently, Carmen has been leading the concept design stage for Mecanoo’s renovation of the New York Public Library Midtown Campus. Having been involved in the Library of Birmingham from project onset, Carmen played a pivotal role in project delivery, maintaining high levels of client satisfaction.

In her design approach and client consultation, Carmen leverages attentiveness and strong listening skills in an effort to tease out the nuances in the assignment and produce design solutions that are not only unique to the brief, but also deliver unexpected results. Carmen also plays an integral role in Mecanoo’s research team, MEC-LAB, with a focus on design for education and learning environments.