Manuela Valtchanova

Manuela Valtchanova is an architect and researcher based in Barcelona. Trained in architecture at the Technical University of Munich and at UACEG in Sofia, she holds a PhD in Aesthetics and Theory of the Arts from the University of Barcelona and works as a researcher at ELISAVA Research within De Ci De, the Design–City–Democracy group.

Her work examines the intersections of politics, space and affect, with attention to direct action, radical cartography and more-than-human entanglements; it moves between temporary interventions in contested places and collaborative socio-spatial practices. She teaches at ELISAVA, including the Master of Emergent Futures run with IAAC, and has shown at Melbourne Design Week, Barcelona Design Week, Art i Ciutat and BASE Milano’s We Will Design, where she was a temporary resident in 2026.