Archinect - News

Rowan Moore picks his favorite UK projects for 2022

2022-12-30T15:22:00-05:00

Playful, elegant additions to universities and colleges were the class acts to follow, while the newly opened Elizabeth line exceeded all design expectations.

Grimshaw’s long-awaited Elizabeth Line finished second (behind Grafton’s Marshall Building for the LSE). Moore said: “The Elizabeth line, when it finally opened in May, revealed an alternative universe of underground railway travel where everything is bigger, brighter and swisher. This is due to the sheer scale of the stations and to their design – unified and orderly but also curvaceous and a touch baroque.”

Notably absent were any projects by the new Soane Medal winner Peter Barber, any other social housing projects, or the Stirling Prize-winning The New Library, Magdalene College from Niall McLaughlin. The Guardian critic did say he admired Theaster Gates’ community building-inspired Serpentine Pavilion, adding that the all-black design “nicely captured shadow and light and views of surrounding greenery.”

$150,000 Jane & Kevin Roche Scholarship Fund launched to support architecture students

2022-07-11T18:33:00-04:00

A scholarship fund honoring the legacy of the late Kevin Roche has been established by the Connecticut Architecture Foundation (CAF) in coordination with the local firm Svigals + Partners and in time for what would have been the Pritzker winner’s 100th birthday this year. Roche’s children, who were behind the decision to repurpose their father’s heirlooms, said the establishment’s purpose was to “[make] the Pritzker work for the betterment of architecture in a new way, refocusing its lens from the most heralded to the least.”

The fund will begin rewarding money to students with at least two years of completed study in an undergraduate architecture program, or to those holding acceptance letters from accredited graduate programs in the subject, starting next year.

In a live event hosted in New Haven at Yale School of Architecture by Dean Deborah Berke, recent Pritzker laureates Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara of Ireland-based Grafton Architects presented a short video tribute, a...

Grafton Architects has been awarded the 2021 Stirling Prize

2021-10-14T16:46:00-04:00

Grafton Architects has been named by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) as the winner of this year’s Stirling Prize for the best new building in the UK.

The Dublin-based firm won for its Town House multipurpose academic and arts space for Kingston University London.

Image © Ed Reeve

A thermally-activated concrete design, the development serves as a “progressive new model for the design of higher education buildings.” The combination public forum, theater, library, and dance studio provides an open and democratic space to students at Kingstown, one-half of whom are the first in their families to attend university.

Image © Ed Reeve

“Kingston University Town House is a theater for life — a warehouse of ideas. It seamlessly brings together student and town communities, creating a progressive new model for higher education, well deserving of international acclaim and attention,” Norman Foster said, speaking for the jury.

Image © Ed Reeve

This year’s postponed competition rep...

Sir David Adjaye receives RIBA Gold Medal at illustrious virtual event

2021-05-28T17:14:00-04:00

Earlier this week, on May 26th, celebrated Ghanaian-British architect Sir David Adjaye formally received the 2021 Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Royal Gold Medal in a virtual ceremony. Surprise luminaries from around the world, including former U.S. President Barack Obama and U2 singer Bono, participated to congratulate Adjaye on his historic accomplishment.

Calling in from Ghana, Adjaye received his award from the UK’s high commissioner to Ghana, Iain Walker, on behalf of the Queen.

Sir David Adjaye receives the RIBA 2021 Royal Gold Medal for Architecture, presented by the British High Commissioner Iain Walker. Image: RIBA/Francis Kokoroko 2021

“It’s incredibly humbling and a great honor to have my peers recognize the work I have developed with my team and its contribution to the field over the past 25 years,” Adjaye said upon hearing the news that he received the Royal Gold Medal. “Architecture, for me, has always been about the creation of beauty to edify all people...

The Pritzker Prize releases the first-ever virtual ceremony honoring 2020 laureates, Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara of Grafton Architects

2020-10-06T19:24:00-04:00

As previously reported on Archinect, for the first time in 42 years, the Pritzker Prize honors did not take place in person. In response to the restrictions forced by COVID-19 the Pritzker Architecture Prize has created a documentary-style archival video to celebrate the work of 2020 Laureates Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara.

2020 Pritzker Prize Ceremony Highlights

Previously on Archinect: Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara of Grafton Architects named 2020 Pritzker Prize winners

Like the traditional ceremony, there are still addresses from a number of people congratulating the duo and acceptance speeches from both McNamara and Farrell, each sharing their words remotely in special locations.

2020 Pritzker Prize Ceremony, full video

And don't forget to check out Archinect's conversation with Yvonne Farrell below:

For the first time in 42 years, the Pritzker Prize honors will not take place in person

2020-09-30T16:36:00-04:00

On October 6th, the Pritzker Architecture Prize will release a special video dedicated to 2020 Laureates Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara. The documentary-style archival video will highlight the duo's work, their reflections on the industry, and a special message to aspiring architects.

For the first time in 42 years, the Pritzker Prize Awards ceremony will not be held in-person. Yet, the special video tribute will include elements of the traditional Prize ceremony, exclusive, never-before-seen footage of the Laureates and images of their work.

Universita Luigi Bocconi. Image courtesy of Federico Brunetti

Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara are the 47th and 48th Pritzker Prize Laureates. Image courtesy of Alice Clancy

With acceptance speeches delivered remotely, this year's prize winners shared their thoughts in specific locations allowing viewers to look into public and private sites worldwide. For example, McNamara shared words while standing in the Long Room, the main chamber o...

Pritzker Prize winners Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara to speak at Sam Fox School graduation

2020-05-11T18:31:00-04:00

The virtual ceremony — which will be broadcast at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 14 — will celebrate graduating students from the Sam Fox School’s undergraduate College of Art and College of Architecture, and from the Graduate School of Art and Graduate School of Architecture and Urban Design at Washington University in St. Louis.

Susan Barrett (BA and BFA ’89; MArch ’94), president and founder of St. Louis’ Barrett Barrera Projects, will deliver the alumni address.

“In these extraordinary times of uncertainty, it’s important that we continue finding ways to come together as a school,” says Carmon Colangelo, Ralph J. Nagel Dean of the Sam Fox School and the E. Desmond Lee Professor for Collaboration in the Arts.

“I am incredibly excited about our speakers and cannot imagine a more inspiring lineup,” Colangelo continued. “Susan Barrett’s cutting-edge galleries and project spaces have had a major impact on the St. Louis art scene, while Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara have long considered...

Pritzker-winning Grafton Architects selected for Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design's Center for Design and Materials Innovation

2020-03-20T15:04:00-04:00

The recent recipients of the 2020 Pritzker Prize, Grafton Architects, have been chosen by the University of Arkansas to partner with Modus Studio to design the Anthony Timberlands Center for Design and Materials Innovation.

Founders Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara are recognized for their outstanding work in building production and projects responding to urban and social issues. The new center is the duo's first built project in the U.S. In a press statement from the University, Farrell and McNamara share, "We are very excited about building our first building in the United States in Fayetteville, Arkansas. This building helps us think about the future optimistically, where the use of timber with all its possibilities, becomes real, useful, and hopefully loved."

The estimated $16 million design project will be part of the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design and used as a research center for the University's timber and wood design projects. According to Chris Baribeau, p...

Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara of Grafton Architects named 2020 Pritzker Prize winners

2020-03-03T10:07:00-05:00

Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara of Grafton Architects have been awarded the 2020 Pritzker Architecture Prize. Dubbed as the "Nobel Prize" of architecture, the prize is considered the industry's highest honor.

Loreto Community School, photo courtesy of Ros Kavanagh.

In a press statement announcing their selection, the Farrell wrote, “Architecture could be described as one of the most complex and important cultural activities on the planet. To be an architect is an enormous privilege. To win this prize is a wonderful endorsement of our belief in architecture. Thank you for this great honor.”

To which McNamara added, “Within the ethos of a practice such as ours, we have so often struggled to find space for the implementation of such values as humanism, craft, generosity, and cultural connection with each place and context within which we work. It is therefore extremely gratifying that this recognition is bestowed upon us and our practice and upon the body of work we have managed t...

Rowan Moore on the added significance of Grafton Architects' RIBA Royal Gold Medal win

2019-10-07T18:36:00-04:00

It is built into the value system of architecture – the ways in which it is taught, published, recognised and awarded – that the most desirable possible outcome of a career is to be a celebrated maker of singular objects, of buildings that can be admired as you would a painting or a symphony. [...] It’s a start that the prize is to Grafton Architects – that is to say, a whole practice – rather than its two principals alone.

Rowan Moore, the Observer’s architecture correspondent, applauds in his recent commentary the decision to award the next RIBA Royal Gold Medal for Architecture to Irish practice Grafton Architects, a deserving team with female principals at the helm, rather than further perpetuating the glorified idol of the lone (overwhelmingly male) genius.

Grafton Architects team © Grafton

"[...] it would be no bad thing if the RIBA followed up on this year’s tap on its (doubtless beautifully designed) glass ceiling by honouring more architects who are both female and not wannabe Howard Roarks," Moore writes. "There is quite a queue of under-recognised women they could choose from."

Grafton Architects win RIBA 2020 Royal Gold Medal

2019-10-02T09:56:00-04:00

The UK’s highest honor for architecture will go to a seminal firm in neighboring Ireland, the Royal Institute of British Architects announced this morning with the selection of Grafton Architects for the 2020 Royal Gold Medal.

Based in Dublin, the practice was co-founded by Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara in 1978 (the firm’s name was inspired by their original office on Grafton Street in central Dublin). Gerard Carty and Philippe O’Sullivan, who joined in 1992, now complete the leadership team as directors.

Grafton Architects have built an impressive portfolio of globally recognized buildings, most notably in the education sector, many of which resulted from international competition wins.

Solstice Arts Centre, Navan, Ireland © Ros Kavanagh

"Like architects around the world, everyone in Grafton Architects works hard to give each project the attention needed to hopefully enrich people’s lives," Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara commented on their Royal Gold Medal win.

Bocconi ...

Curators Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara discuss the 2018 Venice Biennale's theme, Freespace

2018-06-12T13:23:00-04:00

The 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale is well underway, having opened its doors officially to the public on May 26th. Curated by Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara of Grafton Architects under the title of Freespace, this year's biennale has put a slew of projects on display that are generous and open, asking visitors to enjoy the temporary environments they find themselves in.

In the following video, PLANE—SITE speaks with the Irish architects about the choice for this edition’s theme. The duo has stated their mission is to move beyond architecture as an object, instead imagining Freespace as an invitation to think about architecture as a space of opportunities. Literally and metaphorically, Freespace presents environments of freedom and celebrates the rich civic experience that they create.

Rowan Moore on Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara's Venice Biennale curatorship

2018-05-01T14:57:00-04:00

Farrell and McNamara’s theme is “Freespace”, which they say describes “a generosity of spirit and a sense of humanity at the core of architecture’s agenda”. It can also mean the “free and additional spatial gifts” that architecture can offer and “its ability to address the unspoken wishes of strangers”. They have invited a selection of like-minded architects to demonstrate these qualities with three-dimensional installations of “scale and quality”.

Rowan Moore, architecture critic of the Observer, finds admiring words in his Guardian piece for Grafton Architects principals Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara, who are wearing the curator hats this year at architecture's biggest biennial spectacle: "McNamara and Farrell are neither celebrities nor notable theorists. They are well-respected architects who, determinedly, consistently and over a long period of time, do their stuff. [...] But what stuff."

The 2018 Venice Biennale Theme Announced Today: ‘Freespace’ Will Examine Architecture’s Essential Humanism, Beauty and Generosity

2017-06-07T17:20:00-04:00

Today in Venice, the President of La Biennale di Venezia, Paolo Baratta, and curators Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara announced the theme of the 2018 Architecture Biennale. Entitled “Freespace”, next year’s exhibition will present “a generosity of spirit and a sense of humanity at the core of architecture's agenda, focusing on the quality of space itself.”

Back in January, when the curators were announced, Baratta remarked of 2018’s curatorial agenda:

“The Exhibition curated by Alejandro Aravena offered visitors a critical overview of the worldwide evolution of architecture and underlined how important it is that a qualified demand on the part of individuals and communities be met by an equally effective response, thereby confirming that architecture is one of civil society’s instruments for organizing the space in which it lives and works.

Along these lines, Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara will continue to address the same theme but from the point of view of the quality of ...

Yvonne Farrell + Shelley McNamara named 2017 Thomas Jefferson Foundation architecture medalists

2017-03-08T15:20:00-05:00

Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara have well made their mark in designing highly acclaimed academic buildings around the world. Most recently, the Grafton Architects co-founders were named the recipients of the 2017 Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal in Architecture, the University of Virginia's highest external honor. Medalists are recognized for their achievement in the fields of Architecture, Law, Citizen Leadership, and Global Innovation, all which U.S. president Thomas Jefferson highly regarded. Previous architecture medalists include Cecil Balmond and Toyo Ito.

Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología, Grafton Architects + Shell Arquitectos. Photo: Iwan Baan - Courtesy of Grafton Architects.

In UVA Today, University of Virginia School of Architecture dean Ila Berman acknowledged Farrell and McNamara for their outstanding architectural contributions to culture and education, as seen in projects like the highly acclaimed UTEC in Lima that won RIBA's inaugural International Prize and...

Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara to curate 2018 Venice Biennale

2017-01-17T13:31:00-05:00

The Board of the Venice Architecture Biennale appointed Grafton Architects co-founders Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara yesterday as the curators of the 16th International Architecture Exhibition, which will take place May 26 to November 25 in 2018.

UTEC campus in Lima, designed by Grafton Architects.

The Venice Biennale is familiar ground to Farrell and McNamara, who participated in the Biennale in 2002 and won the Silver Lion in 2012, where they presented their project for the UTEC campus in Lima — the winner of the inaugural RIBA International Prize. Grafton Architects was represented at the 2016 Biennale under the title, “The Physics of Culture”.

Farrell and McNamara will continue to address similar humanitarian themes set forth in Alejandro Aravena's “Reporting from the Front” last year. President Paolo Baratta, chair of the Board of the Venice Biennale, released the following statement on their appointment:

“The Exhibition curated by Alejandro Aravena offered visitors a critica...

One-to-One #49 with Yvonne Farrell, director of Grafton Architects – winners of the RIBA International Prize

2016-12-12T17:02:00-05:00

Shortly after Grafton Architects won RIBA's inaugural International Prize for their UTEC campus in Lima, Peru, I spoke with the firm's director, Yvonne Farrell, to get the backstory to the project and discuss how the award might affect the firm in the long run. As an academic building, UTEC (pictured below) joins a rich collection of other institutional projects by the Dublin-based Grafton, a sampling of which is available in the gallery below.

Listen to One-to-One #49, featuring Yvonne Farrell of Grafton Architects:

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Download: this episode

Shownotes:

Juhani Pallasmaa's The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses

William Curtis' lecture, "Platforms and horizon"

↑ Yvonne Farrel...

Grafton Architects' UTEC “vertical campus” wins inaugural RIBA International Prize

2016-11-23T19:02:00-05:00

RIBA awarded their inaugural International Prize today to The Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología (UTEC) in Lima by Grafton Architects and Shell Arquitectos. Open to architects worldwide, the Prize is RIBA's very own recognition award for “civil architecture that empowers people and societies to innovate and progress”, RIBA President Jane Duncan said. The grand jury, led by architect Richard Rogers, traveled to visit all six finalist buildings before making their final decision.

Irish practice Grafton Architects and Shell Arquitectos from Lima designed the brutalist vertical campus for UTEC, a 50-year-old engineering university that enables young Peruvians to gain engineering qualifications, and therefore encourage social mobility. The jury praised the UTEC building as a bold, masterful project that depicts Grafton Architects' years of experimenting with space and form.

“The vertical structure provides open circulation and meeting spaces in a succession of platforms that compose th...

Limerick's medical school: architecture with a scalpel

2013-08-20T13:18:00-04:00

The project – also comprising student accommodation in the form of gently angled big brick structures that meander down the hillside – is the work of Dublin-based Grafton Architects. The firm have created a sublime ensemble that's now in the running for best building of the year, having been shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling prize. It would be my choice to win, given how radically it has reinvented two building types often consigned to dismal mediocrity.

Click here to see other contenders for this year's RIBA Stirling Prize.

Grafton Architects are also being featured in the upcoming exhibit Sensing Spaces: Architecture Reimagined at London's Royal Academy of Arts.

Archinect - News

Rowan Moore picks his favorite UK projects for 2022

$150,000 Jane & Kevin Roche Scholarship Fund launched to support architecture students

Grafton Architects has been awarded the 2021 Stirling Prize

Sir David Adjaye receives RIBA Gold Medal at illustrious virtual event

The Pritzker Prize releases the first-ever virtual ceremony honoring 2020 laureates, Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara of Grafton Architects

For the first time in 42 years, the Pritzker Prize honors will not take place in person

Pritzker Prize winners Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara to speak at Sam Fox School graduation

Pritzker-winning Grafton Architects selected for Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design's Center for Design and Materials Innovation

Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara of Grafton Architects named 2020 Pritzker Prize winners

Rowan Moore on the added significance of Grafton Architects​' RIBA Royal Gold Medal win

Grafton Architects win RIBA 2020 Royal Gold Medal

Curators Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara discuss the 2018 Venice Biennale's theme, Freespace

Rowan Moore on Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara's Venice Biennale curatorship

The 2018 Venice Biennale Theme Announced Today: ‘Freespace’ Will Examine Architecture’s Essential Humanism, Beauty and Generosity

Yvonne Farrell + Shelley McNamara named 2017 Thomas Jefferson Foundation architecture medalists

Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara to curate 2018 Venice Biennale

One-to-One #49 with Yvonne Farrell, director of Grafton Architects – winners of the RIBA International Prize

Grafton Architects' UTEC “vertical campus” wins inaugural RIBA International Prize

Limerick's medical school: architecture with a scalpel

Rowan Moore on the added significance of Grafton Architects' RIBA Royal Gold Medal win