Wang Shu of the Hangzhou-based firm amateur architecture studio has been announced by Thomas J. Pritzker, Chairman of the Hyatt foundation, as the 2012 Pritzker Prize architecture laureate. Born on November 4, 1963 in the city of Urumqi in the Xinjiang province of China, the 49 year old is the first architect to receive the award from his nation.
He acquired his Bachelor of Science and then Masters Degree from the Nanjing institute of technology in 1988 and a Ph.D. from Tongji University in 2000. From 1990 to 1998, Wang Shu worked for Craftsman to gain experience by learning everything involved in the construction of buildings through the renovations of old structures. Along with his wife Lu Wenyu, they co-founded the Amateur Architecture Studio in 1997, bringing forward their personal critique of the architecture profession in their country. His disapproval of the destruction of urban areas and therefore history as well as rapid developing of rural areas became central to his design approach. An executed example of this mindset is the Ningbo historic museum, where he used recycled materials found near the site to fuse memories of the past into the modern day construct.
Library of Wenzheng College, 1999-2000, Suzhou, China
image © lu wenyu
Library of Wenzheng College, 1999-2000, Suzhou, China
image © lu wenyu
His work process experiences three phases, initial encounters with clients, construction detailing of the project and then the introduction and acceptance of the finished product by users. The forms emerge first from introspective thought, then drawings and follows with discussion to reach final stages. Maintaining a handcrafted aesthetic is of great importance, adding soul and humanizing his structures.
Ningbo Contemporary Art Museum, 2001-2005, Ningbo, China
image © lu wenyu
Ningbo Contemporary Art Museum, 2001-2005, Ningbo, China
image © lu wenyu
Vertical Courtyard Apartments, 2002-2007, Hangzhou, China
image © lu wenyu
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