Balkrishna Doshi wins 2022 Royal Gold Medal for Architecture
Balkrishna Doshi is announced as the recipient of the coveted 2022 Royal Gold Medal for Architecture
Balkrishna Doshi has just been announced as the recipient of the prestigious 2022 Royal Gold Medal for Architecture. The coveted gong has been awarded to the established and widely acclaimed Indian architect through the RIBA and by personal approval by Her Majesty The Queen – it is the UK’s highest architectural honour, announced annually and celebrated around the world by the architecture and design field. Balkrishna Doshi, who also won the 2018 Pritzker Prize and was interviewed in his Ahmedabad home by Wallpaper* in 2009, is one of the world’s most respected architects in his field.
‘I am pleasantly surprised and deeply humbled to receive the Royal Gold Medal from the Queen,’ says Doshi. ‘What a great honour! The news of this award brought back memories of my time working with Le Corbusier in 1953, when he had just received the news of getting the Royal Gold Medal. I vividly recollect his excitement to receive this honour from Her Majesty. He said to me metaphorically, “I wonder how big and heavy this medal will be.” Today, six decades later I feel truly overwhelmed to be bestowed with the same award as my guru, Le Corbusier – honouring my six decades of practice. I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my wife, my daughters and most importantly my team and collaborators at Sangath, my studio.’
The Royal Gold Medal for Architecture is given to an architect or studio once a year, in recognition of lifetime achievement, and an overall body of work. Doshi has been prolific, with works that span decades and mix global and local traditions. Examples include Shreyas Comprehensive School Campus (1958 – 63), Ahmedabad, India; Atira Guest House (1958), Ahmedabad, low cost housing; the Institute of Indology (1962), Ahmedabad, a building to house rare documents; Ahmedabad School of Architecture (1966, with additions until 2012 and renamed CEPT University in 2002), which focused on creating spaces that promote collaborative learning; Tagore Hall & Memorial Theatre (1967), a 700-seat brutalist auditorium in Ahmedabad; Premabhai Hall (1976), Ahmedabad, India, a theatre and auditorium; Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore (1977 – 1992), a business school; Sangath (1981), the studio for his architecture practice, Vastu Shilpa.
‘It was an honour and a pleasure to chair the committee in selecting Balkrishna Doshi as the 2022 Royal Gold Medallist. At 94 years old, he has influenced generations of architects through his delightfully purposeful architecture. Influenced by his time spent in the office of Le Corbusier, his work nevertheless is that of an original and independent thinker – able to undo, redo and evolve. In the 20th century, when technology facilitated many architects to build independently of local climate and tradition, Balkrishna remained closely connected with his hinterland: it’s climate, technologies new and old and crafts,’ said RIBA president Simon Allford. ‘Balkrishna Doshi’s outstanding contribution to the art of architecture, the craft of construction and the practice of urban design establish him as a most deserving recipient of this award and I greatly look forward to him being presented with the medal next year.’
INFORMATION
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
The 2024 Ivor Novello nominations for songwriting have been revealed
77 British and Irish songwriters and composers make up this year's nominees, announced tonight at London's Groucho Club
By Charlotte Gunn Published
-
Why Bollinger’s La Grande Année 2015 champagne is worth celebrating
Champagne Bollinger unveils La Grande Année 2015 and La Grande Année Rosé 2015, two outstanding cuvées from an exceptional year in wine-making
By Melina Keays Published
-
Lexus installation explores time at Milan Design Week 2024
Lexus brought designer Hideki Yoshimoto’s ‘Beyond the Horizon’ to Milan’s Art Point, part of its ongoing series of collaborations with Fuorisalone
By Nargess Shahmanesh Banks Published
-
The visual feast of the Sony World Photography Awards 2024 is revealed
The Sony World Photography Awards 2024 winners have been revealed – we celebrate the Architecture & Design category’s visual artists
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Four Mumbai apartments are transformed into an art-filled contemporary home
Designer Rajiv Saini unites four Mumbai apartments in the Indian city’s Colaba district into a single, expansive, art-filled home for a family
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Activism Award 2024 celebrates architecture’s passionate global champions
The shortlist for architecture’s Activism Award 2024 has been announced, highlighting the work of six nominees
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Riken Yamamoto wins 2024 Pritzker Architecture Prize
Riken Yamamoto has been announced as the winner of the 2024 Pritzker Architecture Prize
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Prix Claude Parent launches as an award promoting architectural experimentation
The late architect’s imagination and innovation inspired Prix Claude Parent, the new design award launching this year to promote ‘transgressive’ architecture
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
The World Monuments Fund/Knoll Modernism Prize 2024 goes to Argentina’s Casa sobre el Arroyo
The World Monuments Fund/Knoll Modernism Prize 2024 is scooped by the Ministerios de Cultura y de Obras Públicas y Municipalidad de Mar del Plata, for its restoration of Argentina’s Casa sobre el Arroyo
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
India’s Hampi Art Labs is a piece of architecture at one with its content and context
The world-class Hampi Art Labs by Indian architect Sameep Padora, near South India’s Hampi Unesco World Heritage Site, mimics the contours of the nearby Tungabhadra River
By Vaishnavi Nayel Talawadekar Published
-
House of Greens in India’s Bengaluru is defined by its cascading foliage
Nestled in Bengaluru’s suburbs, House of Greens by 4site Architects encourages biophilic architecture by creating a pleasantly leafy urban jungle
By Tianna Williams Published