Maria Yablonina

Timeline

1. By 2015

   Architecture and robotic fabrication

   She earns an undergraduate degree in architecture in Moscow, then moves to Stuttgart for master's studies at the Institute for Computational Design. In 2014–15, she designs and develops a custom fiber-laying effector for the ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion.

2. 2020

   Joining Toronto faculty

   After doctoral research at IntCDC, she joins the University of Toronto faculty in 2020.

3. By December 2021

   PhD defence and public lecture

   By December 2021, she completes her PhD defence at the University of Stuttgart's IntCDC and is scheduled to give her public PhD lecture on Designing[with]Machines. Her research treats robotic hardware and architectural design parameters as interdependent variables. Her Designing[with]Machines approach develops hardware, software, and architectural parameters together for task- and site-specific fabrication.

4. 2023

   A robot for Cadet Chapel

   In 2023, she helps develop a ferromagnetic robot for a research project on possible renovation of the U.S. Air Force Academy's Cadet Chapel. The robot clamps to and climbs pipes while sensors track its position; those measurements could inform design files for a new facade system.

5. 2026

   Editing a robotics volume

   She co-edits the 2026 ROB/ARCH2024 proceedings book Robotic Fabrication in Architecture, Art and Design.

6. 2026

   Tree scans for design

   She collaborates with Zachary Mollica at Haliburton Forest in a 2026 study that uses 3D scans of standing trees to plan cuts and recover forks, bends, and branches for design. The project follows timber through felling, cutting, transport, and drying to compare recovered pieces with their scan shapes.

7. As of October 2026

   Assistant Professor at Toronto

   As of October 2026, she is an Assistant Professor at the Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design at the University of Toronto. Her work combines computational design and digital fabrication with robotics to develop hardware, software, and architectural and material systems for spaces and robotic systems that can construct themselves and change in real time.