UCL visiting professor receives top architecture honour

The award is given by the Royal Institute of British Architects and approved by His Majesty the King to an individual recognising their lifetime of work and who has a significant influence on the advancement of architecture. The announcement highlights her work over two decades amplifying under-represented voices and examining the complex relationship between architecture, identity and race, profoundly impacting architectural education, dialogue and discourse.

Professor Lokko has a long-standing and close connection to UCL. She completed her Architecture BSc, Architecture MArch and a PhD in Architectural Design at the Bartlett School of Architecture, and has recently been working with staff and students as a Visiting Professor.

On receiving the award, Professor Lokko said: “It came as such a surprise to me. This was never on the cards. I’m delighted to be considered alongside some of the great past winners of the Royal Gold Medal. Although this is a personal award, this isn’t merely a personal triumph, this is a testament to the people and organisations I have worked with that share my goals.”

Professor Christoph Lindner (Dean, UCL Bartlett Faculty of the Built Environment) said: “As both a Bartlett alum and visiting professor, Lesley Lokko has been an inspiring, supportive, and generous member of our community for many years. We are thrilled to see this timely recognition of her visionary work in the field of architecture."

Known primarily for her work as an academic and educator, her career has focused on democratising, decolonising and progressing architectural education, and has taken her to academic posts around the world, including as Founder and Director of the Graduate School of Architecture at the University of Johannesburg and Dean of The Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture at The City College of New York.

In 2023, she curated the 18^th International Architecture Exhibition at the Venice Biennale, the first the first woman of African descent to curate the major architectural exhibition. She was also made an OBE the same year. In 2021 Professor Lokko founded the African Futures Institute in Accra, Ghana, a teaching and research institute whose aim is to transform contemporary architectural education by uniting teaching, research and practice in innovative ways.

Professor Amy Kulper (Director, UCL Bartlett School of Architecture) said: “Professor Lesley Lokko is a trailblazer in the field of architecture, promoting the transformation of architectural pedagogy and practice through the complimentary lenses of decolonization and decarbonization. Her pioneering work in founding the African Futures Institute and being the first woman of African descent to curate the Venice Biennale, places mobility and diasporic identity at the forefront of architectural discourse and design. The Royal Gold Medal for Architecture represents one of the highest honours an architect can receive, and her colleagues at the Bartlett School of Architecture and UCL have nothing but pride and admiration for her accomplishments."

The award will formally be presented to Professor Lokko at a ceremony in London on 2 May 2024.

Links

• RIBA Announcement
• Visiting Professor Lesley Lokko Profile
• UCL Bartlett School of Architecture
• UCL Bartlett Faculty of the Built Environment
• African Futures Institute

Media Contact

Mike Lucibella

• E: m.lucibella [at] ucl.ac.uk

Image

Credit: Murdo Macleod