Jao Smet

Since Jao’s studies at the academies of Sint-Niklaas and Sint-Lucas in Ghent, art, architecture, and landscape have been a constant in his almost always out-of-home life. In addition to leading his own office, [input / output[ or io-architecten, he is a part-time design lecturer at the Faculty of Architecture in Ghent. 

As a design lecturer, organizing and guiding study trips was part of Jao’s duties (Barcelona, Grenoble, Bratislava, New York, and Paris). The hunger to experience architecture was once again confirmed during planopli in the prospecting trip to Mexico in 2022 and later as an expert guide on trips to, among others, London and Mallorca-Menorca. He had also previously committed himself to international academic trajectories, such as guiding studios and study trips (including in Havana), which further deepened his interest in architecture as a cultural and social practice. 

The studies at the academy of Sint-Niklaas and at Sint-Lucas brought the relationship between art and architecture to his attention and have since become interwoven in Jao’s daily practice. This broad approach translates into an architecture that strongly emphasizes context, materiality, and light, and that can be read both functionally and artistically. Within io-architecten, he works on a wide range of projects, from houses to mixed-use programs, with sustainability, timelessness, and careful integration into the surroundings at the center. 

His ongoing interest in art and space regularly takes him to modern and contemporary art exhibitions and architecture biennials, both in the Netherlands and abroad, ensuring that observation, reflection, and design remain inseparably linked in his practice.