Joshua Prince-Ramus is best known as architect of the Seattle Central Library, already being hailed as a masterpiece of contemporary culture. Prince-Ramus was US Partner of Rem Koolhaas’ Office of Metropolitan Architecture before founding his own firm, REX, in 2006.
Why you should listen to him:
With one of the decade's most celebrated buildings under his belt, Joshua Prince-Ramus would seem well-positioned to become the world's next "starchitect." Except that he doesn't want the job. With his quiet intensity and intellectual bearing, Prince-Ramus is the antithesis of the egomaniacal master architect. He flatly rejects not just the title, but the entire notion of a "starchitect" designing with a genius stroke of the pen.
Prince-Ramus is best known for his work — with Rem Koolhaas’ radical Dutch architecture firm OMA — on the Seattle Central Library. The striking, diamond-windowed structure reimagines, to spectacular effect, the library’s role in a modern urban context. "Seattle's new Central Library is a blazing chandelier to swing your dreams upon," Herbert Muschamp wrote in The New York Times. "In more than 30 years of writing about architecture, this is the most exciting new building it has been my honor to review."
Having founded the US practice of OMA in 2000, Prince-Ramus split from Rem Koolhaas in May 2006 to found a new firm, REX, with colleague Erez Ella. He continues to take what he describes as a hyper-rational approach to architecture, pushing logic and rational ideas to their limits to create buildings that are unexpected, but wholly appropriate to their environment and intended use. REX's current projects include Museum Plaza in Louisville, the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre in Dallas; the Vestbanen redevelopment in Oslo, Norway; and the new headquarters for design house Vakko, in Istanbul. REX is also one of five finalists for the Governors Island redevelopment in New York.
"Joshua Prince-Ramus isn't just creating buildings. In a field obsessed with celebrity, he’s putting the work -- and his workers -- first."Fast Company
Blog Posts on TED
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What to do until the TED DVD arrives... – March 2, 2006
I don't know about you, but my mind is simply abuzz with the sights, sounds, emotions, and ideas I encountered at TED 2006. I can't wait for the TED DVD to arrive so that I can go back and listen to the words of Sir Ken Robinson, hear the music of Thomas Dolby, and soak in the... ahem, insights, of Charles Fleischer.
Until then, Google will have to do.
For example, Joshua Prince-Ramus did a marvellous job of showing us a design process which capitalized on very real contraints in order to create the stunning Seattle Public Library. When was the last time you heard an architect say that focusing on capital and operational budgets provided a springboard to innovation? Until I see his talk again on the TED DVD, this BusinessWeek interview with Prince-Ramus which I Googled is just enough to keep my brain from going hungry.
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Joshua Prince-Ramus splits with Rem Koolhaas – May 15, 2006
At TED2006, architect Joshua Prince-Ramus held our rapt attention as he deconstructed the process of building the Seattle Library, peeling back the collaborative "hyper-rational" process layer by layer. It was clear to us then that Prince-Ramus — U.S. director of Rem Koolhaas' architecture firm, OMA — was poised to make a name for himself, independent of his mentor. (Note the pre-TED coverage in BusinessWeek Online.)
Now it's official. Prince-Ramus has set out on his own, forming a new firm with business partner Erez Ella, and taking the entire New York OMA office and the majority of U.S. clients with them. Though the split was amicable, breaking up is always hard to do. "It ultimately became a clear decision, but not an easy one," Prince-Ramus told The New York Times, which ran a full-page story yesterday. Said Koolhaas: "The sadness is something we deal with in private."
The new firm, Ramus-Ella Architects (REX), will continue to oversee development of the Wyly Theater in Dallas and the Museum Plaza in Louisville (both of which Prince-Ramus walked us through in Monterey), as well as the Annenberg Center at CalTech. Good luck to you, Joshua! We're looking forward to seeing you succeed!
