ABOUT US
STOA, Studio of Architecture is a contemporary design based firm located in Johannesburg, South Africa. Our work is informed by context, history, the poetics of space and life, individual lifestyle, functionality and experience as opposed to the typical consideration of aesthetics and use only. We do not offer one typology or profess any particular style, instead we respond to each project in individual, unique, and relevant ways. We have a wide range of experience within different types and scales of Architecture from residential to commercial and institutional. Every project is considered within the broader context as well as with fine attention to detail.
Alexia Cocolas is the principal Architect at and owner of STOA, she has sixteen years of experience within architectural practice. She runs both her architectural and art [alexiacocolas.com] practices from Johannesburg and is an Associate Lecturer in the Third year Architectural Design course at The University of the Witwatersrand. She also teaches Kundalini yoga on a volunteer basis at a safe house in the inner city, to young women who have endured a history of violence, sexual abuse and abandonment.
Prior to qualifying in 2001 she worked for various architectural practices in South Africa and in London, England. Alexia joined Urban Solutions Architects and Urban Designers in 2003 and was there until mid 2010 at which point she was a junior partner. The work that she has undertaken includes the design and management of architectural projects within both residential and commercial spheres. She has been involved in the project management of building conversions from commercial space to residential apartments in the Johannesburg city centre, the management of large scale, integrated residential projects, student housing as well as the design and management of construction of individual houses in various parts of the country. In 2010 she opened STOA, Studio of Architecture.