Christopher Wilkinson

Christopher John Wilkinson (1 July 1945 – 14 December 2021) was a British architect and co-founder of the architecture firm WilkinsonEyre. He was known for his techno-centric designs and execution of projects ranging from office spaces, factory floors, skyscrapers to botanical gardens. Some of his projects included the Magna Science Adventure Centre, Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Guangzhou International Finance Center, and the Gardens by the Bay in Singapore. Wilkinson was elected a member of the Royal Academy of Arts in 2006, and was awarded an OBE in the Millennium Honours List for his contributions to architecture. His firm, WilkinsonEyre, was the first to win back to back RIBA Stirling Prizes in 2001 and 2002. Early life Wilkinson was born in Amersham, Buckinghamshire, on 1 July 1945. His mother Norma (née Treleaven Beer) had participated in World War II, while his father was a surveyor with the British multinational consumer goods company Unilever. He studied at St Albans School, Hertfordshire, where he was introduced to art foundation and drawing. He graduated with a degree in architecture from the Polytechnic of Central London in 1970. Career Wilkinson started his career working for the English architect Denys Lasdun who was then working on the Royal National Theatre. During this period he took some time off to travel to Greece. During this time, he came into contact with the works of English architects Norman Foster and Richard Rogers. He returned back and applied to both of their design firms and later joined Norman Foster's firm in 1971. At the firm, he worked with Foster's partner, Michael Hopkins and went on to work for Hopkins when he started his own firm in 1976. Some of the projects that Wilkinson worked on during this time included renovation of 10 Trinity Square, which was to be Willis Faber and Dumas' headquarters, and Greene King Brewery. In 1981, he moved on to work with Richard Rogers's firm, where he worked on the Lloyd's of London building. Working with Foster, Hopkins, and Rogers, he was exposed to the British modernist movement in architecture called hi-tech architecture that believed in exposing and expressing a building's structure.