Metropolitan Studio of Architecture
MSA is an Architecture Studio of Architects, Interior Designers, Visualizers and thinkers based in Lahore, Pakistan. It is an award winning practice recognized as one of the most influential names in Architecture Design for 2016 by Architectural Digest, India. From Modest beginning with two people, MSA has grown to an office with a three-tier management structure. The Inter disciplinary approach at MSA results in an uncommon level of refinement to the architectural work, generating an opportunity to create spaces imbued with experiences. MSA’s interdisciplinary approach has a lot to do with the diverse academic background of its principals. Coming from backgrounds of Philosophy and Psychology, the principals at MSA are usually in a strong position to negotiate with the design issues both in and outside the realm of Architecture. Apart from contributing to the interdisciplinary approach that MSA has, this further allows the firm to look at the problem from multiple perspectives and really get in to the design process. For MSA, the issue is more about how to approach an issue, rather than just to gear for its resolution.
In order to further strengthen the approach, MSA has gone a step ahead to create a separate division of its own, with designated resources, known as MSI-RI i.e the research initiative. This is an independent research engine that fuels the research, which then becomes part and parcel of what MSA produces on its own. The collaboration between MSA and RI itself gives rise to interesting opportunities that allow the firm to explore novel ideas that inform their design. The nature of rigorous collaboration between MSA-RI & MSA gave rise to a novel idea of MSA COLLABORATIVE. It is an initiative that brings professionals from other disciplines on board keeping in view the nature of the projects, in order to develop a cohesive perspective to address the issues posed by the project. This has taken MSA as a firm beyond an ‘Architecture Only’ thinking