VIRTUAL MADRID FOCUS ON PEDAGOGY
Abstract
As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to influence both professional practice and academic discourse—often accompanied by concerns around automation and academic integrity—this research explores the constructive integration of AI in architectural education. Focusing on AI’s image processing capabilities, the study was conducted within a final-year Design Studio at the University of Toronto’s Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design. Graduate architecture students engaged with AI tools to inform their design processes, with particular attention to composition, materiality, and the evolving dynamics of labor and decision-making in AI-assisted design. The research pursues two primary objectives: (1) to document and analyze the variety of uses of AI in architectural design through student-led experimentation, and (2) to critically reflect on the pedagogical implications of AI integration in architectural education. By examining how these tools reshape design thinking and studio culture, the study contributes to a broader understanding of AI’s evolving role in shaping the future of architectural learning and practice.
Wei-Han Vivian Lee is a registered architect in the U.S. and Canada and Director of the Master of Architecture Program at the University of Toronto’s Daniels Faculty. As founding partner of LAMAS, her design and scholarly work investigate craft and ornament in the digital age, expanding to current research on AI and pedagogy. LAMAS has been recognized as one of Domus’s 50 Best Architecture Firms and has received awards from MoMA PS1, Architect Magazine’s R+D Award, Architects Newspaper, and Frame. Lee holds an MArch from Harvard GSD and a BA in Studio Arts from Wesleyan University.
Gladys Lee is a recent graduate of the Master of Architecture program at the University of Toronto and recipient of the 2025 ARCC King Student Medal for excellence in architectural and environmental research. Her research involvement (Reframing Early Architectural Education in the Age of AI, University of Toronto, current; ANYmore: Looking Back at Architectural Pedagogy, Toronto Metropolitan University, 2021) share a focus on exploring the shifting frameworks of architectural pedagogy, from the influence of emerging technologies to the cultural narratives that shape teaching and learning in design.
11:00 pm - 12:30 am
Wednesday 24th June, 2026