After serving an apprenticeship in Lugano, Italy, Mario Botta first attended the Art College in Milan and then studied at the University Institute of Architecture in Venice. Directed by Carlo Scarpa and Giuseppe Mazzariol he received his professional degree in 1969. While studying in Venice, he had the opportunity to meet and work for Le Corbusier and Louis I. Kahn. Botta's professional career began in 1970 in Lugano. Known for his single-family houses in Ticino, the place of his birth, his work now encompasses many other building types, including schools, banks, administration buildings, libraries, museums, and sacred buildings. Botta also teaches extensively, and runs lectures, seminars and courses in architectural schools in Europe, Asia, North and South America. He served as visiting professor at the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale in Lausanne in 1976, and at the Yale School of Architecture, New Haven, United States in 1987 and since 1983 he is Professor of the Swiss Polytechnic Schools. From 1982 to 1987 he was a member of the Swiss federal commission of fine arts. Since the beginning of his career, Botta's work has been recognized internationally and honored with prestigious awards. In 1996 Botta became one of the founders of the Academy of Architecture of the Università della Svizzera Italiana in Mendrisio, Switzerland. Today he continues to teach there as a Professor, and he held the directorship from 2002 to 2003, and 2011 to 2013. By teaching at the Academy of Architecture, his role as chairman of the award jury of the BSI Architectural Foundation and his current commitment in the realization of the Theatre of Architecture, Botta is able to impart his knowledge of a profession that is, first and foremost, his passion.
