- Rodney Gordon
Rodney Gordon (1933-2008) was a British
architect . He was the primary architect of theTricorn centre ,Portsmouth . Architecturally, his works were primarily inconcrete ; he was said to be a Brutalist and his buildings were said to be "dramatic, sculptural and enormous" as well as "futuristic".Croft, Catherine (2008-09-10). [http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2008/sep/10/architecture "Obituary: Rodney Gordon".] "The Guardian ".]Biography
He was born on February 2, 1933 in
Wanstead , eastLondon to aPolish -Russian father and aChilean mother.Career
He went to University College Hospital Medical School at the age of 16 but then, two years later inspired by the
Festival of Britain , he switched to theHammersmith School of Building where he studied underArthur Korn who encouraged him to apply to theArchitectural Association School of Architecture from which he graduated in 1957. After graduation from the AA he went to work at the London County Council architects department for which he designed his first great work, theMichael Faraday Memorial at Elephant and Castle . [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article4534019.ece "Rodney Gordon: brutalist architect who worked with Owen Luder".] "The Times ".] In 1959 he was introduced toOwen Luder by a colleague from the LCC and by the end of the year he was working for him in the "Owen Luder Partnership" for which he designed theEros House . In the 1970's he founded "Batir International Architects", which later became "Tripos Architects", withRay Baum andLarry Abbot . It was during this time, at the age of 42, that he suffered a heart attack from overwork. In 1979 he designed his last great work for Batir, a bronze- and aluminum-clad commercial complex onSt James's Street, London .During his lifetime he was twice president of the
Royal Institute of British Architects .Personal life
He was married an had one child but was later divorced. He was a passionate skier and founded the "Uphill Ski Club" which helps teach the physically handicapped to ski. He once considered standing for Parliament but was unable to decide which political party to represent. Although he was a brilliant architect he was a poor businessman and self-publicist.
He died on May 30, 2008 at the age of 75.
References
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.