Anello, Designed by Architecture Lecturer Oscar Lopez, Featured in ArchDaily and designboom

Oct. 8, 2020
Who
Oscar Lopez, Lecturer in Architecture
What
Profile of Anello Restaurant, Designed by Oscar Lopez and his firm s p a c e BUREAU.
Where
Tucson, Arizona
When
2020
Categories
Anello Restaurant exterior.

Anello Restaurant, designed by CAPLA Lecturer in Architecture Oscar Lopez and his firm s p a c e BUREAU, was featured on October 6 in ArchDaily, the world's most visited architecture website, and October 7 in designboom, a design-oriented site based in Milan, Beijing and New York City.

"Anello is a project that is rooted in the concepts found in Wabi Sabi, embracing the beauty found within imperfections," says Lopez, as reported in ArchDaily. "Using this concept and logic, Chef/Owner Scott Girod, who has spent time living in both Japan and in Italy and mentored under Chris Bianco of the world-famous Pizzeria Bianco, opened Anello within a historical building dating back to the end of the 19th century in the heart of the old warehouse district in Tucson, Arizona. The project occupies one of five small 'shotgun' style spaces housed within the historical building."
 

Anello interior

 
Lopez continues: "The limited square footage of the space allowed for an extra sense of intimacy that the project was searching for in terms of the overall warmth & experiential feeling, aiming to have a space that was both intimate and inviting for its Tucson community that was designated as the first UNESCO City of Gastronomy in the United States in 2015. The spatial organization of the project is centered around two things, the first being the hand-made brick pizza oven that was shipped directly from Naples."

Read the full project profile and view a gallery of images at ArchDaily and view the full project and images in designboom.
 

Anello exterior at night

 
Since founding s p a c e BUREAU in 2016, Lopez and his practice have received eight AIA Awards for built projects on the local, state and regional AIA level. He has been a lecturer at CAPLA since 2016, teaching second-year architecture studios and serving as American Institute of Architecture Students faculty advisor and leader of summer study abroad programs. Lopez, who serves as the AIA Southern Arizona associates director and co-chair of the 2020 AIA Arizona virtual state conference, is a recipient of the 2018 AIA Arizona Associates Award and 2019 AIA Mountain Region Jason Pettigrew Leadership Scholarship.

Photographs by Roehner + Ryan.

Latest CAPLA News, Projects and Profiles

Jackie Hogan Headshot

Research-Based Approach to Architecture: Jackie Hogan M.Arch + MS.Arch ‘25

Jackie Hogan (’25 M.Arch + MS.Arch) is a dual-degree graduate of CAPLA whose work bridges architectural practice and research-driven design. Drawn to architectural history, theory and ethics, she pursued the M.Arch + MS.Arch dual degree to explore how research can shape meaningful design decisions. During her time at CAPLA, she engaged in community-centered design through Laura Carr’s studio working with the Tuba City community and completed a thesis examining architecture’s role in disaster relief and climate-related emergencies. Now working at Line + Space, Hogan brings an evidence-based approach to projects, applying research to create thoughtful spaces that connect people, culture and the environment.

Block Up

CAPLA Lecturer and Alumni Win 2025 AIA Arizona Ideas Competition

Senior Lecturer in Architecture Oscar Lopez and three CAPLA alumni won first place in the 2025 AIA Arizona Ideas Competition for their proposal “BLOCK UP.” The project reimagines the urban tower as a vertical civic framework for Phoenix, integrating public space, housing and climate-responsive design into a shared, adaptable structure. Developed through close collaboration between Lopez and alumni Sal Arellano, Trevor Watson and Cameron Noble, the proposal explores how density can expand community and access beyond the street level, highlighting CAPLA’s impact on forward-thinking, civic-minded design in Arizona.

The white facade of Mission San Xavier del Bac is seen against a clear blue sky. A paved path leading to the mission passes through an earthen wall fronted by cactus and other desert plants.

Rehabilitation of the Retablo Facade at San Xavier del Bac | Lecture by Starr Herr-Cardillo

Learn about ongoing work to preserve decorative finishes and restore missing and damaged elements of the retablo facade of Mission San Xavier del Bac. This work is supported by the Semiquincentennial Grant Program, administered by the National Park Service.

See More