Shelley McNamara facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Shelley McNamara
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McNamara in 2013
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| Born | 1952 (age 72–73) Lisdoonvarna, Ireland
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| Alma mater | University College Dublin |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Awards | Pritzker Prize Royal Gold Medal others |
| Practice | Grafton Architects |
| Buildings | Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología |
Shelley McNamara, born in 1952, is a famous Irish architect and teacher. She studied at University College Dublin and became an architect in 1974. In 1978, she started her own architecture firm, Grafton Architects, with her friend Yvonne Farrell.
Grafton Architects became very well-known in the early 2010s. They are famous for designing strong, spacious buildings, especially for universities. Shelley McNamara has also taught architecture at University College Dublin since 1976 and at many other universities around the world.
Grafton Architects has won many important awards. They received the 2020 Royal Institute of British Architects Royal Gold Medal. Their building for the Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología in Lima, Peru, was named the best new building in the world in 2016. In 2021, they won the RIBA Stirling Prize for the Town House building at Kingston University. Shelley McNamara and Yvonne Farrell also shared the 2020 Pritzker Prize, which is the highest award an architect can receive!
Contents
What Does an Architect Do?
Building Cool Places with Grafton Architects
Shelley McNamara and Yvonne Farrell started Grafton Architects in Dublin in 1978. They named their company after Grafton Street in the city. As of 2017, their company had 25 people working there. Shelley and Yvonne were in charge of all the designs.
They like to use strong materials like stone and concrete. They use these materials to create big, open buildings. These buildings are designed to help people interact and connect with each other. Shelley McNamara once said that they don't just think of a space and then find a structure. Instead, they build a structure, and that structure then creates the space.
The team at Grafton Architects is especially good at designing buildings for universities. They have created buildings for universities in places like Toulouse, Limerick, and London. These include classrooms, medical schools, and places for students to live. They became famous around the world for their building at Bocconi University in Milan, Italy, which was finished in 2008.
Their most celebrated building is the one for the Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología in Peru. This building won the RIBA International Prize in 2016. It was recognized as the best new building in the world that year. Grafton Architects has also designed many other buildings in Ireland. These include homes and business places, as well as more university buildings.
Teaching the Next Generation of Architects
Shelley McNamara has been a studio lecturer at the School of Architecture in UCD since 1976. She started teaching there with Yvonne Farrell soon after she graduated from University College Dublin. She taught there regularly between 1976 and 2002. In 2015, Shelley McNamara became an adjunct professor at UCD.
Besides UCD, Shelley McNamara has been a visiting professor at many other universities. These include Oxford Brookes University and the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne. She became a full professor at Mendrisio in 2013. In 2010, she held a special teaching position at Harvard Graduate School of Design. She also held another special position at Yale University in 2011. Shelley McNamara has also given many lectures at architecture schools in Europe and America.
Sharing Knowledge Through Books
Shelley McNamara and Yvonne Farrell wrote a book together in 2014. It is called Dialogue and Translation: Grafton Architects. This book shows off their company's work and their ideas about architecture. It also includes some lectures they gave at Columbia University.
Amazing Buildings and Projects
Here are some of the important buildings and projects designed by Grafton Architects:
- 2006: Solstice Arts Centre in Navan, Ireland.
- 2008: Waterloo Lane Mews in Dublin, Ireland.
- 2008: Drogheda Fire and Rescue Services Station in Drogheda, Ireland.
- 2012: University of Limerick Medical School in Limerick, Ireland.
- 2015: University Campus UTEC Lima in Peru.
- 2016: The Paul Marshall Building for the London School of Economics in London, United Kingdom.
- 2018: They were chosen to organize the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale in Italy.
- 2019: Université Toulouse 1 Capitole in Toulouse, France.
- 2020: Kingston University Town House.
- 2021: ESB Headquarters in Dublin, Ireland.
Awards and Exhibitions
Shelley McNamara and Grafton Architects have received many honors:
- World Building of the Year Award in 2008 for the Bocconi University building in Milan, Italy.
- Silver Lion Award at the Venice Biennale in 2012.
- Their University of Limerick Medical School was considered for the RIBA Stirling Prize in 2013.
- They won the fourth annual Jane Drew Prize in 2015 for their big impact on architecture.
- RIBA International Prize in 2016 for the Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología in Lima, Peru.
- They were chosen to organize the 16th Venice Biennale of Architecture in 2018.
- Received an honorary doctorate from Trinity College Dublin in 2019.
- Won the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2020, sharing it with Yvonne Farrell.
- Won The Daylight Award in 2022 for their work with daylight in architecture, shared with Yvonne Farrell.
- UCD Alumni Award for Architecture in 2015.
Shelley McNamara is a member of the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland. She is also an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects. She was the first architect to become a member of Aosdána, which is a group of Irish artists.
See also
In Spanish: Shelley McNamara para niños
