Keith Williams
Encyclopedia
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architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
.
Education and career
Keith Williams studied architecture at Kingston and Greenwich Schools of Architecture before co-founding Pawson Williams Architects in 1987, and subsequently his own firm Keith Williams Architects in 2001.Whilst much of Williams' early work was conceptual, he nevertheless realised major galleries at the Natural History Museum in London, and carried out a significant re-modelling of the Birmingham Repertory Theatre.
His oeuvre has expanded enormously since 2001, and following notable competition wins he and his London based studio team are working on numerous high profile projects across a wide variety of building types in many geographic locations.
He became a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 1983, the Royal Institute of Architects in Ireland in 2005, a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in 2007, a member of the National Design Review Panel for the Commission of Architecture and the Built Environment in 2009, now Design Council CABE, and in 2011 was elected to the National Awards Panel of the Civic Trust.
Much awarded, he has lectured widely on his work and his projects have been published worldwide culminating in a monograph on the firm's work Keith Williams : Architecture of the Specific which was published in December 2009.
Style
Williams works from the premise that architecture is primarily concerned with simple components such as light, form, space, scale, and material. Coupled with due consideration for scale history and context, this results in buildings that achieve a stark aesthetic balance between his contemporary, visionary designs and that which exists whether sensitive and historic, or brownfield A passionate believer in the capacity for architecture and the public realm to enhance the lives of citizens, he has devoted much of his career to designing major projects including Theatres, Concert Halls and Opera Houses, Civic Buildings, Museums, Galleries and Libraries.Principal works
- 2009 - Fairfield Halls Redevelopment, Croydon,England
- 2007-2011 Residential Tower, Black Prince Road,London
- 2007-2011 Chichester District Museum, ChichesterChichesterChichester is a cathedral city in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, South-East England. It has a long history as a settlement; its Roman past and its subsequent importance in Anglo-Saxon times are only its beginnings...
, England - 2007-2011 Marlowe TheatreMarlowe TheatreThe Marlowe Theatre is a major 1200-seat theatre in Canterbury, England.It closed in March 2009 for redevelopment and a brand-new Marlowe Theatre re-opened to audiences on 4 October 2011.-Name:...
redevelopment, CanterburyCanterburyCanterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
, England - 2005-2011 Athlone Art Gallery, Ireland
- 2005–2008 WexfordWexfordWexford is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. It is situated near the southeastern corner of Ireland, close to Rosslare Europort. The town is connected to Dublin via the M11/N11 National Primary Route, and the national rail network...
Opera House, IrelandIrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth... - 2004–2010 Clones Library & County HQ, Ireland
- 2001–2006 The Long House, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental... - 2001–2005 Unicorn TheatreUnicorn TheatreThe Unicorn Theatre is a producer of professional theatre for children in Britain. It is based in a RIBA Award–winning centre in Tooley Street, in the London Borough of Southwark, opened in 2005...
, London, England - 2001–2004 Athlone Civic Centre, Athlone, Ireland
Key competition projects
- 2009 Museum, Stadhaus am Markt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- 2009 Støperiet Kulturhus, Tønsberg, Norway
- 2009 Kulturpark,Alzenau, Germany
- 2009 Kulturzentrum Eisenstadt, Austria
- 2008 NS Dokumentationzentrum, Munich, Germany
- 2007 Molde Jazz Centre, Norway
- 2007 Helsingor Maritime Museum, Denmark
- 2007 Flekkefjord Cultural Centre, Flekkefjord, Norway
- 2006 New Sculpture Building, Royal College of Art, London
- 2005 Darmstadt University Library, Germany
- 2005 Moesgård MuseumMoesgård MuseumThe Moesgård Museum is a museum located in Højbjerg, a suburb of Aarhus, Denmark. The museum is housed partially in the historic Moesgård manor, newer facilities built for the purpose of the museum and a large open portion of the museum surrounds the facilities...
, AarhusAarhusAarhus or Århus is the second-largest city in Denmark. The principal port of Denmark, Aarhus is on the east side of the peninsula of Jutland in the geographical center of Denmark...
DenmarkDenmarkDenmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark... - 2005 Kunstenshus Art Museum Herning, Denmark
- 2005 Centro de la Justicia de Madrid, SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
- 2002 Schiller Museum, Marbach am NeckarMarbach am NeckarMarbach am Neckar is a town on the river Neckar in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The nearest larger cities are Ludwigsburg and Stuttgart ....
, GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... - 2001 Centro Culturale Di Torino, ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Selected prizes for completed work
- 2010 Civic Trust Award, AIA UK Excellence in Design Award, Quadrennial Award for Practical Excellence in Design, LAMA National Impact Award, RIAI Highly Commended Project
- 2009 RIBA European Award, RIAI Award Best Cultural Building , Irish Times Special Jury Award, Irish Times Special Jury Award for Wexford Opera House
- 2008 Building Design (UK), Public Building Architect of the Year
- 2008 Chicago Athenaeum International Architecture Prize, OPUS Architecture and Construction Award, RIBA Award
- 2007 USITT Award, Copper in Architecture Award, RIAI Award Best House
- 2006 Building Design (UK), Public Building Architect of the Year
- 2006 RIBA Award : Unicorn Theatre, Chicago Athenaeum International Architecture Prize, RIAI Overseas Award, RIBARibaRiba means one of the senses of "usury" . Riba is forbidden in Islamic economic jurisprudence fiqh and considered as a major sin...
Award, Irish Concrete Society Overall Winner - 2005 RIAI Special Award Best Sustainable Project, 2005 RIBA European Award, OPUS Architecture and Construction Award, Lighting Design Award
Further reading
- Keith Williams : Architecture of the Specific" : The Master Architect Series Images Publishing Group 2009. ISBN 978-1-864-70235-4