Technical Studies Open Lecture: William Alsop. 15th October.

TECHNICAL STUDIES OPEN LECTURE SERIES

Professor William Alsop – ALL Design

Progress Report

Thursday 15th October, 6.30pm Room M416 (The Robin Evans Room)

University of Westminster

Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment

35 Marylebone Road

London NW1 5LS

Will Alsop OBE RA was born in Northampton, the shoe making capital of Britain. He studied architecture at the Architectural Association in the 1960s and worked for the sartorially monochrome iconoclast Cedric Price for four years. He has been awarded the RIBA Stirling Prize for Peckham Library, London and the first RIBA World Award for The Sharp Centre for Design (OCAD), Toronto, amongst numerous other prestigious accolades for a multitude of projects. His work encompasses all sectors of architecture including urban design and planning. His studio practice also incorporates painting and product design.

His practice is founded principally to 'make life better' - the philosophy extends from the design of individual buildings to embrace broader principles of urbanism and city development and he uses painting, writing and 'playing' to further understanding of design. He sits on the architectural advisory boards for Wandsworth and Kensington & Chelsea Councils. He is visiting Professor of TU Vienna; Professor of Architecture at Canterbury School of Architecture, UCA and this year was awarded the degree of Honorary Doctor of Design (HonDDes) from the University of Greenwich, in recognition of his achievements.

“Because of his avant-garde and strikingly different buildings, Will Alsop has always been considered something of a ‘maverick’ or ‘infant terrible’ in the British architectural scene. Once dubbed "architecture's Mr. Blobby" by the press, Alsop's buildings often don't always look like buildings at all- most are a riot of bright colours, blobby pods, spindly supports and look nothing like the surrounding environment. His government offices in Marseilles are painted in Yves Klein Blue (YKB) and attract one million visitors a year, despite being intended only as the French equivalent of a county hall.

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