Portfolio: Maria Luciana Viola '25 (MPSS)
The Office of Academic Affairs awarded Maria Luciana Viola ’25 (MPSS) the Chairman’s Award for her overall performance at NYSID. At NYSID, capstone projects are long journeys that challenge students to brainstorm, conduct research, and synthesize all they have learned. The journey ends with a presentation to a jury of faculty and industry professionals. Our students work closely with faculty to create hypothetical designs that offer solutions to real-world problems.
Student: Maria Luciana Viola
Project: Nanushka
Program: Master of Professional Studies in Sustainable Interior Environments
Instructors: Luca Baraldo and Bethany Borel
With her theoretical project inspired by the real fashion brand Nanushka, Maria Luciana Viola reimagines retail as an immersive cultural experience rather than a purely commercial space. Designed as a multilevel flagship store in SoHo, along Broadway, the project responds to the long and narrow footprint typical of Manhattan buildings. Viola used this linear condition to choreograph circulation, carefully shaping sightlines and vertical transitions to create a continuous journey across retail, archive, café, and community spaces.
Inspired by the fashion brand’s Hungarian heritage and commitment to slow fashion, Viola developed a spatial narrative that bridges past, present, and future. The store becomes a platform for storytelling, craftsmanship, and sustainable practice. Beyond product display, the design invites visitors to linger, explore, and engage through workshop areas, rotating pop-ups for emerging designers, and exhibition spaces that foster cultural dialogue.
Research played a central role in shaping the project. Viola investigated circular design strategies, material life cycles, and low-impact construction systems, applying principles such as design for disassembly, modular construction, and material transparency. Low volatile organic compound (VOC) finishes, recyclable components, and flexible display systems ensure that the space can evolve over time without requiring a full redesign. “Adaptability,” she says, “is fundamental to sustainability.”
Under the guidance of thesis instructors Luca Baraldo and Bethany Borel, Viola translated her graduate training into a refined and forward-thinking retail concept that aligns environmental responsibility with brand identity. Now working as an interior designer at CetraRuddy in New York, NY, she continues to advance interiors that are both experientially rich and environmentally conscious.
— Swagatika Rath ’26 (MFA1)
