In the Teatinos-Universidad district of the city of Málaga stands the Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, a work of LLPS Arquitectos (Eduardo Pérez Gómez and Miguel Ángel Sánchez). The complex – with a built area of 31,639 square meters – is broken up into two parts: one is suspended, hermetic, and clad in white ceramic, for teaching activities, classrooms, seminar halls, and research laboratories, and also teachers’ offices; and the other is glassy, permeable, in contact with the ground, for public functions. From here arose the idea of a large architectural tree or forest, with teaching and learning taking place among the branches.

The outer ceramic skin imitates leaves, capturing different nuances of light. Achieving this effect involves meticulous work focused on the concave morphology, the matte enamels, and the final geometry. The 9.5-meter depth, compact and elevated, closes to the outside while opening to the inside through courtyards evenly distributed within the building, arranging the space and providing great flexibility for the program. In this way, the interior space is like a fretwork of light courtyard-walls, which among other things induces air circulation. On the roof, a bioclimatic garden incorporates photovoltaic panels.