About Unagru | East London Architects

We are a young architecture and urbanism practice, eager to grow by meeting and learning from clients and consultants. We like to think of architecture as a complex team research process, where the most important goal is to think creatively to identify the right problem. Although we are very proud of our technical prowess, we’re also proud of how we communicate our ideas. Let’s face it: architects can be socially awkward, but we try to establish a relationship of trust and friendship with our clients.

We like to propose bold ideas to create stimulating and inspiring spaces to live, work, grow, learn. Our mixed culture, British and Italian, makes us particularly appreciate brightness and natural light, open plans; we try to avoid corridors, doors and anything that fragments spaces.

Finally, we work hard to understand the effects of our work on the city and the environment in general.

Our services embrace architecture, urban design, and planning, but we have focused most of our attention on private residential projects in the last few years. In the past year, we obtained planning permission for two new-build houses and a mixed-use development. Two of our projects have been featured in the London Open House Festival, and one is featured in Don’t Move Improve 2021 exhibition.

We believe in space’s ability to influence people’s lives, affecting layers of perception that are often neglected. We like quality and make sure things work correctly, energy stays inside, money and time are not wasted, and people are at the centre of the process. After several years, we have learnt how a well-managed design process can be an exciting, experimental and life-changing experience for both the clients and the designers.

"Unagru architect’s beautiful, elegantly detailed and very skillful adaptation of a simple terrace house into a place of comfort and tranquility. Thoughtful clients and developers, hire them without a second thought!"

- Tony Fretton, 2021

Our team

Davide di Martino

Director

dv@unagru.com

RIBA ARB

M.Arch. IUAV University, Venice, Italy

ETSAB, Barcelona, Spain.

Ph.D. In Urbanism and Ecology

Lucrezia di Martino

Marketing and Business development

mail@unagru.com

Gary Yeow

Content and Office

Manager

mail@unagru.com

M.Arch. University of Strathclyde

Awards

2021

The Sponge House shortlisted in Build It Awards

The Sponge House featured in Don't Move Improve Awards

The Sponge & The House for Cellist featured in the London Open House

2019

InsideOut courtyard house featured in the London Open House

The Boat and Pavilion featured in the London Open House

2018

The Boat and Pavilion featured in the London Open House

2012

3rd prize Sorso waterfront masterplan

International competition

Member of project team: urban planning and landscape

2011

Shortlisted Grosio Sports Centre

Grosio, Italy

National competition

Project leader.

2010

5th prize “AAA Architetti Cercasi”

Milan, Italy

Under 35 national competition

Project leader

2008

Shortlisted and special jury price Concorso Eu-genio

Campania Region

Under 40 architecture and urbanism competition

Research

Academic Publications

visit Academia.edu profile

Projects

AAA Architetti Cercasi competition submission

Future Magazine

Spain, Europe, China

(published in English, Spanish, and Chinese)

Academic, peer reviewed

di Martino D. (in press). Urban wetlands as performative, multifunctional design devices: the wetland scenario. In F. D. Moccia, M.F. Palestino, Planning Stormwater Resilient Urban Open Spaces, Clean: Napoli. 193 - 204

Barcelloni Corte, M., di Martino, D. (2014, in press). Pollution ecologies: from reclamation to restructuring. In Bandieramonte, V., Cavalieri, C., Guida, I., Rashidzadeh, K. (eds.), The Next Urban Question. Roma: Officina Edizioni.

di Martino, D. (in press). Bonifica e riciclo della Piana Campana. In PPC Piano Progetto Città: Zero Waste 27-28, 2013.