Sawako Bolch is a Japanese architect and designer whose work investigates architecture through an animistic worldview, contemporary technology, and traditional wisdom. Her approach challenges conventional architectural thinking by embracing animism, spirituality, and alternative materials.
Sawako earned a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Liechtenstein and completed an internship at SANAA in Tokyo. She then pursued the Master of Arts in Interior Architecture at HEAD – Genève, during which she spent an exchange semester at the Royal Danish Academy in Copenhagen. Through the MAIA program, she deepened her focus on inclusive and animistic spatial practices. Her thesis, Teahouse on Mars, challenged conventional perspectives on planetary habitation and evolved into her diploma project, SCOBY STORIES – A Space for Anima, which explores animistically conscious architecture through symbiotic living materials for all beings.
Diploma Project
SCOBY STORIES – A Space for Anima
This speculative project envisions a space for Anima, a half-human, half-SCOBY being sent from the Microorganism Kingdom to Earth. Her mission: to heal gut health through kombucha and share SCOBY wisdom to regenerate microbial life.
Made from symbiotic cultures of bacteria and yeast, SCOBY transforms into a translucent, biodegradable membrane that returns to the soil. Set in a forest between two rivers, the Anima Teahouse hosts fermentation labs, workshops, and tea ceremonies. It is a place where humans, microbes, and the natural world converge—a space for all beings.
