Silvia Brandi was invited to speak at IED Barcelona as part of the IED Muses Talks, a series of live conversations exploring the relationship between design, art, and future-oriented practices.

The talk took place in dialogue with Irem, and unfolded as an open conversation around Silvia’s trajectory — from her work in architecture and education in Barcelona to the development of FarmLab in the rural context of Southeast Styria, Austria.

Rather than presenting a linear narrative, the exchange focused on the shifts in perspective that accompanied this transition: moving from urban and institutional frameworks towards a practice grounded in place, material constraints, and seasonal cycles. The discussion addressed how working in a rural environment challenges conventional approaches to design, requiring a different relationship to time, resources, and community.

FarmLab was introduced as a hybrid space combining a digital fabrication laboratory, a small-scale farm, and a creative hub open to both local and international practitioners. Within this context, projects emerge through a process-based approach, often at the intersection of traditional crafts and contemporary technologies — from collaborations between artists and local artisans to material experimentation rooted in the surrounding landscape.

A central theme of the conversation was the role of optimism as a working position. Drawing from earlier initiatives such as Atlas of the Future and Fixing the Future Festival, Silvia reflected on the need to move beyond speculative discourse and engage with situated, tangible practices. In this sense, FarmLab can be understood as an attempt to embody some of these ideas in a real context — testing what it means to design and make within ecological and social limits.

The exchange with the audience played a significant role, extending the conversation beyond the initial framework and opening questions around the role of rural areas in shaping future design practices.