Manuel and Francisco Aires Mateus graduated from the Faculdade de Arquitectura/ Universidade Tecnica de Lisboa (F.A/ U.T.L) in 1986 and 1987, respectively. They worked in the office of architect in Goncalo Byrne since 1983 and in 1988 they founded their own office, Aires Mateus Architects. Since 1998, they hold professorships in design at the Universidad Autonoma de Lisboa and at the Accademia di Architectura de Mendrizio since 2001.

They have been visiting design critics at many different international universities and institutions such as the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University (2002, 2005) and have given lectures and seminars in more than twenty different countries.

The work of Aires Mateus has been published in many several monographs including Aires Mateus ("El Croquis", no 154, Madrid, 2011), Aires Mateus ("Darco Magazine", Matoshinhos, 2009), Abitare el limite. Dodici Case di Aires Mateus & Associados (Salerno, 2009) or Aires Mateus ("2G", no 28, Barcelona, 2003).

They have had exhibitions in many different places such as the Venice Biennale (2010) and Gallery 1, RIBA London (2009). Their work has been awarded with the First FAD Prize for Architecture and Ephemeral Interventions (2010), the First FAD Prize for Architecture and Interior Design (2001) and has been short-listed for the Mies van der Rohe Award on a number of occasions