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 architect and teacher from Ireland. She studied at University College Dublin and finished her architecture degree in 1974.
In 1978, she started a company called Grafton Architects with Yvonne Farrell. Their company became well-known in the early 2010s. They design 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 won the 2020 Royal Institute of British Architects Royal Gold Medal. Their building for the Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología in Lima, Peru, won the 2016 RIBA International Prize. This award meant it was the best new building in the world that year. In 2021, their Town House building for Kingston University won the RIBA Stirling Prize. Shelley McNamara and Yvonne Farrell also won the 2020 Pritzker Prize. This is the highest award an architect can receive.
Contents
Designing Buildings with Grafton Architects
What is Grafton Architects?
Shelley McNamara and Yvonne Farrell started Grafton Architects in Dublin in 1978. They named it after Grafton Street in the city. As of 2017, their company had 25 employees. McNamara and Farrell were in charge of all the designs.
They often use heavy materials like stone and concrete. This helps them create large, open buildings. These spaces are designed to help people interact and connect. McNamara believes that "we make a structure and that, in turn, makes a space." She also said that "the enjoyment in architecture is the sense of weight being borne down or supported."
The architects are known for designing buildings for higher education, like universities. They have created buildings for universities in places like Toulouse, Limerick, and London. These include teaching buildings, medical schools, and places for students to live.
They became famous around the world with their building for Bocconi University in Milan, Italy. This building was finished in 2008. Their most celebrated building is the one for the Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología in Peru. It won the RIBA International Prize in 2016. This award recognized it as the best new building in the world that year.
Grafton Architects has also designed many buildings in Ireland. These include homes, businesses, and more university buildings.
Teaching Architecture
Shelley McNamara as a Professor
Shelley McNamara has taught at the School of Architecture in UCD since 1976. She started teaching there with Yvonne Farrell soon after graduating. She taught consistently at UCD between 1976 and 2002. In 2015, she became an adjunct professor at UCD.
Besides UCD, McNamara has been a visiting professor at other universities. These include Oxford Brookes University and the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne. In 2013, she became a full professor at Accademia di Architettura di Mendrisio. In 2010, she held a special teaching position at Harvard Graduate School of Design. She also taught at Yale University in 2011.
McNamara has also given many lectures at architecture schools in Europe and America.
Books and Writings
Shelley McNamara and Yvonne Farrell wrote a book together in 2014. It is called Dialogue and Translation: Grafton Architects. This book shows their company's work and their ideas about architecture. It also includes some lectures they gave at Columbia University.
Important Buildings Designed
Here are some of the major buildings designed by Grafton Architects:
- 2006: Solstice Arts Centre, Navan, Ireland.
- 2008: Waterloo Lane Mews, Dublin, Ireland.
- 2008: Drogheda Fire and Rescue Services Station, Drogheda, Ireland.
- 2012: University of Limerick Medical School, Limerick, Ireland.
- 2015: University Campus UTEC Lima, Peru.
- 2016: The Paul Marshall Building - London School of Economics, London, United Kingdom.
- 2019: Université Toulouse 1 Capitole, Toulouse, France.
- 2020: Kingston University Town House.
- 2021: ESB Headquarters, Dublin, Ireland.
Awards and Exhibitions
Shelley McNamara and Grafton Architects have received many awards:
- World Building of the Year Award in 2008 for the Bocconi University building in Milan, Italy.
- Silver Lion Award at the Venice Biennale Common Ground Exhibition in 2012.
- Shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize in 2013 for the University of Limerick Medical School.
- Won the fourth annual Jane Drew Prize in 2015 for their "massive influence" on architecture.
- RIBA International Prize in 2016 for the Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología, Lima, Peru.
- Appointed as curator of the 16th Venice Biennale of Architecture in 2018.
- Honorary doctorate from Trinity College Dublin in 2019.
- Pritzker Architecture Prize winner in 2020, shared with Yvonne Farrell.
- The Daylight Award 2022, for daylight in architecture, shared with Yvonne Farrell.
- UCD Alumni Award for Architecture in 2015.
McNamara is a fellow 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
