About
DONIS is an international studio of architecture, urbanism, research, industrial design, and art. The studio has won several international prizes, including the Dubai Frame, selected as the first-prize winner from 926 proposals in an international competition regulated by UNESCO-UIA; the first prize for the National Palace of Justice in Paris; and the winning design for a new landmark for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games at the City of London. DONIS designs, develops, and builds projects across a wide range of scales and programs, consistently pursuing innovative, sustainable, and socially engaged architecture. DONIS was founded by Fernando Donis, Mexican Dutch architect who received his Master’s degree from the Architectural Association in London through the Design Research Laboratory (DRL), where he studied under Patrik Schumacher and Brett Steele. He also received a PhD in Architecture from Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), through the doctoral research program The City as a Project, led by with Pier Vittorio Aureli. His doctoral research, FRAME, is a five-chapter study of the archetype of the frame and its role in the architectural and urban history and culture of Mexico. Following his studies at the Architectural Association, Fernando Donis worked closely with Rem Koolhaas as an Associate at the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) for nine years, from 2001 to 2009. During this period, he was the main designer of the CCTV Headquarters in Beijing, among numerous other architectural projects and masterplans. He also collaborated with AMO, OMA’s research and design branch, contributing to research projects concerning the European Union. Fernando Donis has taught at the Berlage Institute and the Academy of Architecture in Rotterdam, as well as at Universidad Iberoamericana and Universidad Anáhuac in Mexico, integrating architectural research, design, and urbanism across multiple scales. His work and career have received international recognition. In 2011, CNN Expansión selected him as one of the 30 most promising and influential people in Mexico. In 2015, Mexico’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs selected him as one of the country’s most creative Mexicans living abroad.
Castelar 75
Ubicación – Ciudad de México, México
Año – 2019–2023
Programa – Oficinas corporativas, sede de DONIS
M² – 18,314.46 m²
Castelar 75 es un edificio corporativo sostenible que replantea la relación entre el control solar y la abstracción de la naturaleza. Sus louvers de mármol reproducen la geometría oblicua de los árboles del Parque Lincoln, ubicado frente al predio, transformando una estrategia ambiental pasiva en una expresión arquitectónica.
El resultado es un edificio dinámico cuya fachada ramificada proporciona sombra natural, al tiempo que establece una identidad visual sólida en una de las ubicaciones más emblemáticas de la Ciudad de México: Polanco.
Seleccionado por Arquine como uno de los edificios más importantes de México en 2021–2022, y galardonado con el Premio Firenze–Reforma de Arquitectura Corporativa en 2023, Castelar 75 alberga además la oficina de DONIS Studio en la Ciudad de México.
Al recorrer la avenida Castelar, entre el edificio y el Parque Lincoln, el visitante experimenta una continua sensación de movimiento: un diálogo entre masa y marco, luz y sombra, naturaleza y arquitectura. A medida que la luz natural cambia durante el día, la fachada revela patrones visuales en constante transformación que refuerzan esta relación dinámica.
En el contexto de la crisis climática, Castelar 75 demuestra que el desempeño ambiental y la identidad arquitectónica pueden convertirse en una misma cosa. Su diseño, certificado LEED Gold, reduce significativamente la ganancia térmica por radiación solar y la demanda de enfriamiento, mientras que su fachada deriva su lenguaje formal de los principios fractales presentes en la naturaleza, creando una identidad corporativa distintiva basada en la inteligencia ambiental, más que en el ornamento.
