Umberto Napolitano

Umberto Napolitano is an Adjunct Professor at Columbia GSAPP. Following a stint as a literature student he studied architecture at the Università Federico II in Naples and then at the Ecole d’Architecture de Paris-La Villette.

Napolitano is inspired by many things: the visual arts, esthetics, literature, and music are all longstanding interests, while cities and travel remain veritable obsessions. All these concerns have conspired to internationalize his personal and professional trajectory, and enabled him to open himself to other cultures and ways of seeing, thinking and doing.

During his studies Napolitano met and became friends with Benoit Jallon, with whom he began working together on projects. He and Benoit both graduated with a French architecture degree (or “DPLG”) in 2001. Their thesis focused on changes in habitat and proposed a new narrative centered on cities, or perhaps on one sole, large city, especially one made up of both men and women.

After spending a year in Rome, Jallon and Napolitano returned to Paris in 2002 and founded LAN. Since then, Umberto has given himself wholeheartedly to the firm while also maintaining extensive teaching, writing, and lecturing engagements.