Designing minimalism with John Pawson CBE

As an architect, are you influenced by the environment you grew up in, even if your work looks vastly different to where you spent your formative years? John Pawson thinks so. He grew up in the north of England in the 1950s with his four sisters, playing with kids from houses around their family home. Despite being a master of minimalism, he grew up in a house that was quite the opposite. 

John Pawson CBE has spent over forty years making rigorously simple architecture. His work spans everything from London’s Design Museum to the Czech Republic’s Cistercian Monastery, Calvin Klein’s store on Madison Ave in New York and a range of private homes and the furnishings to go with them. His work is defined by the use of natural materials, a sensitivity to light and spare spaces that have a feeling of calm. 

At a turning point in his life as a young man, Pawson set off on a ‘round the world ticket with nothing to lose. His first stop was in Nagoya, where he had the idea to become a Buddhist monk. When that failed, he went to Tokyo and met Shiro Kuramata.  

Despite having no formal qualification as an architect, his accolades are many. They recognise his influence as one of the world’s leading architects. In 2007 he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his contribution to architecture in the UK. 

Listen in as Vince and John discuss knocking down walls to redesign Hester van Royen’s rented flat, the moment Calvin Klein turned up to his office unannounced in 1993 and how starting out can often feel painfully slow. 

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