Samuel Castañeda is an architectural designer whose work is grounded in the relationship between design, experience, and the ways people inhabit space. A graduate of Cornell University’s five-year Bachelor of Architecture program, his academic path included periods of study in Rome and New York, building on an earlier year spent living and studying in Florence, Italy.

Currently an Architectural Designer at BMA Architects, Samuel works across concept design, site and zoning analysis, visualization, and construction documentation, contributing to projects from their earliest ideas through technical development. He also co-directs the firm’s AI Committee, researching emerging tools and identifying where they can meaningfully support architectural practice and create greater room for play, exploration, and iteration throughout the design process.

His broader interests extend toward civic, cultural, and institutional work, where architecture can engage larger communities and more complex urban contexts. Alongside architecture, photography remains an important part of his practice, sharpening his attention to composition, atmosphere, light, and place. His work is on full display at samuelcastaneda.net which serves as an evolving archive of these observations, documenting the places, environments, and experiences that continue to shape his work.