Richard England

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Church building based on plans by Richard England in the Maltese town of Mellieha

Richard England (born October 3, 1937 in Sliema , Malta ) is a Maltese architect , writer , artist and university professor . He designed numerous buildings in his home country and abroad, created sculptures and published specialist books.

Life

Richard England first attended St. Edward's College in Malta and studied architecture at the University of Malta and at the Milan Polytechnic . From 1960 to 1962 he worked in the studio of the architect and designer Gio Ponti in Milan.

He taught at the University of Malta and was Dean of the University of Malta between 1987 and 1989 , after which he remained an honorary professor there. Richard England was also an honorary professor at the University of Bath in the UK and professor and vice president of the International Academy of Architecture in the Bulgarian capital Sofia .

Act

Between the 1960s and 2000s, England won numerous architectural competitions and successfully participated in international events. His works found their way into numerous countries in North and South America , the Middle and Far East and the Soviet Union . He worked in Saudi Arabia from 1970, together with well-known architects such as Robert Venturi , Arthur Erickson and Ricardo Bofill , member of a team of consultants for the mayor of Baghdad .

The Mexican National Council for Culture and the Arts invited Richard England in 2002 to chair the opening of a symposium in honor of the architect Luis Barragan .

Richard England is impressed by the magic of water and the endless possibilities of reflection of water and light and tries to incorporate this into his buildings. His works are also known as "metaphysical architecture", influenced by the writings of Italo Calvinos , Ben Okris and Jorge Luis Borges '.

The architecture of England occupies a special niche in the architecture of the Mediterranean region. His buildings combine traditional Maltese style elements and building materials with modern building methods and at the same time incorporate memories of the past centuries.

In 1984 the journalist Charles Knevitt said: "Richard England's restless mind and nervous energy find expression in so many different artistic fields that it leaves one breathless". (Eng .: "Richard England's restless mind and nervous energy find expression in so many different artistic fields that it leaves one breathless.")

The English architect Dennis Sharp rated Richard England: “England's work remains as firm and inspirational as the unique citadel of stone that is the island of Malta.” (Eng: "England's work remains as firm and inspiring as the unique stone citadel that the island of Malta is.")

Works (selection)

buildings

Worldly
  • 1971: Central Bank of Malta
  • 1984: Hospital buildings with a meditation garden in Santa Venera
  • 1988: Residence in Mgarr
  • 1991: Extension buildings for the University of Malta in Msida , district Tal-Qroqq
  • 1992: Extension buildings for the Central Bank of Malta in Valletta
  • Tourist Village on Comino
  • Salina Bay Coastline Hotel in Malta
  • Overbuilding of the remains of the old opera house in Valletta as the new opera house
  • Garden structures in St Julians in fairytale shapes and colors
  • House X , Moscow
  • BaaM in Calabria , Italy
  • Extension buildings for an office complex in Baghdad
Ecclesiastical

Works of art

Sculptures
  • Sculpture White Shadows in Sliema
  • Dracula sculpture in Transylvania , Romania
  • Penguines , an extensive representation of an upright penguin family made up of seven animals of different sizes in the colors red, purple, green, blue and yellow
  • Sculpture up & dn
  • Sculpture Love in St Julians
Drawings and sketches

- R. England summarizes this work under the term "Das sehende Auge" (The seeing eye).

  • Sketches as charcoal drawings and watercolors from many places in Malta, Italy (Santorini, Pienza) and around the world such as Petra (Jordan) , Patras or the Hatshepsut Memorial
  • own surrealistic ideas ( Invisible cities , Mythopolis )

Books

  • Walls of Malta , 1971
  • White is white
  • In Search of silent spaces , 1983
  • Gozo, Island of Oblivion , 1997
  • Spirit of Place, Milan. , 1998

Honors and awards (selection)

  • seven design awards from the International Architecture Academy IAA (1983, 1985, 1991, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2009)
  • two Commonwealth Association awards (1985, 1987)
  • 1985: a gold medal from the city of Toulouse
  • 1987: Honorary doctorate of the Institute of Advance Studies of the City University of New York
  • 1987: a silver medal from the International Committee for Architecture Criticism
  • 1988: Biennale Laureate Award in Georgia , then still the Soviet Union belong
  • 1991: IFRAA Prize for Religious Architecture from the American Institute of Architects
  • 1996: Winner of the 3rd Architecture Biennale in Costa Rica
  • 2000: Gold medal at the Triennial of World Architecture in Belgrade , Serbia
  • 2003: Honorary doctorate from Sofia University , Bulgaria
  • 2010: Honorary doctorate from the University of Spiru Haret , Romania

literature

  • Emile Henvaux: Richard England, Architect in Malta , Editions de la Libraire Encyclopedique, Belgium, 1969.
  • Charles Knevitt: Connections , Lund Humphries London, 1984
  • Chris Abel: Transformations: Richard England, 25 Years of Architecture , Mid-Med Bank Limited, Malta, 1987.
  • Edwin Heathcote: Richard England , Wiley Academy, London. 2002.
  • Myriam England, Charles Knevitt, Conrad Thake: 100 at 70 . Malta, 2007.

Web links

Commons : Richard England  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Charles Knevitt: Connections , London, 1984.
  2. ↑ Homepage of the Salina Bay Coastline Hotel (English)
  3. ↑ Some exterior views of the hotel , accessed on May 10, 2019 ..
  4. ↑ Chapel website , accessed May 10, 2019.
personal data
SURNAME England, Richard
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Maltese architect, writer, artist and university professor
DATE OF BIRTH October 3, 1937
PLACE OF BIRTH Sliema , Malta