In the history of building, Howard Robertson is one of the names that keeps returning.
The record lists Howard Robertson as American-born British architect (1888-1963).
Howard Robertson was born at Salt Lake City in 1888. His recorded nationality is United Kingdom. He trained at Architectural Association School of Architecture and Malvern College.
Modernism rejected ornament and historical style, arguing that a building should express its structure and its function - a claim contested ever since.
He is recorded as architect.
His best-known building is Shell Centre. An architect is judged by how a building is used a century after the drawings.
Recognition followed: Legion of Honour, Royal Gold Medal and Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects.
That the work was built in United Kingdom shaped it: climate, materials, planning law and who holds the budget all decide what can actually be built.
Howard Robertson died in 1963, aged 75. The buildings remain, still in use by people who never knew the name - which is the particular afterlife architecture offers.
Achievements
- Notable work: Shell Centre
- Legion of Honour
- Royal Gold Medal
- Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects
- Trained at Architectural Association School of Architecture and Malvern College
