SPADE is an interdisciplinary design studio, based in Cologne and Milan.
We believe in design as a tool for driving change and enhancing our relationship with space and objects by connecting social, ecological, technological and cultural environments.
Our work ranges from architecture to interior and product design as well as speculative artifacts and installations.
Selected projects are part of the collection at the Design Museum in Munich, the Museum of Applied Arts in Cologne, the Museum of Applied Arts in Vienna, and the German Museum of Technology in Berlin.
SPADE was founded by Marco Hemmerling as a platform for research-driven and experimental spatial design.
SPADE
Marco Hemmerling is Professor of Computational Design at the TH Köln – Cologne University of Applied Sciences, Faculty of Architecture and Visiting Professor at the Politecnico di Milano – School of Architecture, Urban Planning and Construction Engineering. Before joining TH Köln, he was Professor at the Detmold School of Design and Director of the post-graduate Master program Computational Design and Construction at the TH OWL – East-Westphalia University of Applied Sciences.
He is a coopted member both of the Association of German Architects (BDA) and of the German Association of Craftsmen (DWB). For the year 2025 he has been awarded a scholarship of the German Academy in Rome at Casa Baldi, considered one of the most important awards for outstanding artists in the fields of visual arts, architecture, literature and music.
Marco studied Architecture at Bauhaus University Weimar, Politecnico di Milano and Bochum University of Applied Sciences. During his several years as project architect at UNStudio in Amsterdam, he was jointly responsible for the design and construction of the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart as well as for several product designs for Alessi and Walter Knoll.
