Peter Zumthor is a top Swiss architect, whose work is frequently described as minimalistic. Head architect and founder of his own firm, he is the winner of the 2019 Pritzker Prize and 2013 RIBA Royal Gold Medal. He has been recognized for amazing projects across the world, and that’s why he’s celebrated as one of the most amazing architects of all time. Today, Paris Design Agenda is about to tell you all about him!
Born in Basel, Peter Zumthor was exposed to design at an early age, becoming an apprentice for a carpenter in 1958. Then, he studied industrial design and architecture in New York and worked on historic restoration projects that gave him a further understanding of construction and the qualities of different rustic building materials.
As his experience and expertise developed, Zumthor was able to incorporate his knowledge of materials into Modernist construction and detailing. His buildings explore the tactile and sensory qualities of spaces and materials while retaining a minimalist feel. It was in 1979 that the architect decided to invest in himself, founding his own firm in 1979, accepting international projects immediately.
His best-recognized projects are the Kunsthaus Bregenz, shimmering glass and concrete cube that overlooks Lake Constance in Austria; the cave-like thermal baths in Vals, Switzerland; the Swiss Pavilion for Expo 2000 in Hannover, the Kolumba Diocesan Museum, in Cologne; and the Bruder Klaus Field Chapel, on a farm near Wachendorf.
One of his projects sits on Devonshire, in a broad and picturesque natural landscape. Peter Zumthor Atelier architecture studio designed the project for a holiday home as part of the Living Architecture program founded in 2006 by Alain de Botton.
One of his most recent projects sits on Los Angeles’ LACMA’s new building that will be composed of seven semi-transparent concrete and glass pavilions. Peter Zumthor’s design also includes new outdoor landscaped plazas, public programming, educational spaces, sculpture gardens, and integrated native and drought-tolerant vegetation.
