María José de Blas and Rubén Picado are architects from the Escuela Superior de Arquitectura de Madrid (ETSAM), the city where they founded their own architectural firm, Picado de Blas Arquitectos, in 1991.
Drawing is their primary instrument of thought. Their teaching profile has been intertwined with the professional from the very beginning. Their analyses incorporate ecological thinking with the expectations of the stakeholders behind each project. They defend the ethics of the process as part of the consequence of its outcome. They seek architecture that generates a humanized, warm, and open atmosphere.
Maria José de Blas is pursuing a postgraduate degree at the University of York Kings Manor (UK), specializing in Landscape Architecture. She began her teaching career in Form Analysis and Architectural Drawing at CEU San Pablo during its first 10 years. Rubén Picado taught for two years at IEDesign and five years at UEM in Madrid. Both are pursuing doctoral degrees at ETSAM and UCLM and participate in master's programs, workshops, and courses with other universities and international institutions. (UPN, UFM, ESNE, ETSAM, UIC, TEC, UBA, etc.)
They are currently both professors of Project Design and tutors for the Final Degree at the Universidad San Pablo CEU Arquitectura in Madrid. They have three ANECA six-year research periods under their belts and have maintained their teaching profile for over 32 years. They have served on the COAM Culture Committee for five years, curating entire exhibition series such as "THE AUTHOR SHOWS HIS WORK," "RECENT WORK," and "100% RAW."
