Colin St John Wilson | |
|---|---|
 Bust of Sir Colin St John Wilson byCelia Scott on display in the foyer of theBritish Library | |
| Born | Colin Alexander St John Wilson 14 March 1922 Cheltenham, England |
| Died | (aged 85) |
| Resting place | Highgate Cemetery |
| Alma mater | Corpus Christi College, Cambridge |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Buildings | British Library,Pallant House Gallery,Spring House |
Sir Colin Alexander St John Wilson,FRIBARA, (14 March 1922 – 14 May 2007) was an English architect, lecturer and author. With his partnerMJ Long,[1] Wilson spent over 30 years progressing the project to build a newBritish Library in London, originally planned to be built inBloomsbury and now completed nearKings Cross.
Wilson was born inCheltenham, the younger son ofHenry Wilson, aChurch of England clergyman who becameBishop of Chelmsford from 1929. His father was known as the "Red Bishop" as a result of his sympathy for theRepublican cause in theSpanish Civil War. Wilson was educated atFelsted School, and he studied history and then architecture atCorpus Christi College, Cambridge from 1940 to 1942, when he joined theRoyal Navy Volunteer Reserve.[2]
Wilson served as a lieutenant in a Communication Squadron of theFleet Air Arm in Europe during the Second World War and then India. He wasdemobilised in 1946.[3]
He completed his studies under SirAlbert Richardson at theBartlett School of Architecture atUniversity College London, graduating as an architect in 1949.[4]
After graduating, Wilson worked at theLondon County Council architects department from 1950 to 1955, under the directorship ofSir Leslie Martin, alongsideJames Stirling,Alison and Peter Smithson,Alan Colquhoun,Peter Carter, andWilliam Howell. His designs of this period include theLe Corbusier-inspired Bentham Road Estate,Hackney.[5][6]
Wilson was involved with theIndependent Group of artists at theInstitute of Contemporary Arts in London, and he contributed to the seminal "This Is Tomorrow" exhibition at theWhitechapel Art Gallery in 1956.
Wilson was appointed as a lecturer in architecture atUniversity of Cambridge in 1956, where Martin had been appointed Professor of Architecture. Wilson met Finnish architectAlvar Aalto through Martin and this had a major impact on his approach to architecture.[citation needed] He was a Fellow atChurchill College, Cambridge, from 1962 to 1971. He retired from teaching in 1969 to concentrate on his architectural practice. Wilson returned to Cambridge to become Professor of Architecture in 1975, stepping into shoes vacated by the early death of William Howell. He was a Fellow atPembroke College, Cambridge, from 1977 to his death in 2007. He retired in 1989, becoming aprofessor emeritus.
As well as teaching together, Wilson and Martin also practised together as architects from offices inCambridge, designingHarvey Court atGonville and Caius College, Cambridge, which Wilson argues had an influence on Italian rationalist architecture, especially that ofAldo Rossi; an extension to the School of Architecture in Cambridge, ahouse for painter Christopher Cornford in Cambridge, and theLaw, English and Statistical Libraries onManor Road inOxford; and other buildings in Cambridge and London.
Wilson designed his own home in Cambridge onGrantchester Road, built in 1961-64.
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In terms of architectural production, Wilson is best known for co-designing with MJ Long the currentBritish Library building in London, begun in 1962 and finally completed – after a 35-year history of political wrangles, budget overspending and design problems – in 1997. Wilson described it as his "30-year war". The original scheme would have created apiazza to the south of theBritish Museum inBloomsbury, but would have required the demolition of a large part of Bloomsbury. After a public protest, a new site was found further north, betweenEuston Station andSt Pancras Station. A design was approved in 1978, but then delayed by the change of government after the1979 general election, and ambitions were reduced amid rising costs.
The architecture of the huge building is influenced by several sources: the surrounding Victorian architecture in theSt Pancras area of London and the collegiate architecture ofCambridge University. The use of finely detailed brickwork, multi-layer terraces, interplay of pitched roof elements and gradual stepping up of the entrance are all direct references to Aalto, in particular hisSäynätsalo Town Hall. The entrance area features pendant lamps designed by the Finnish architectJuha Leiviskä, whom Wilson knew personally.[7]
The British Library building was shortlisted for the RIBAStirling Prize in 1998. An extension to the building opened in 2007, shortly before Wilson's death.
Wilson and Long & Kentish designed the new wing ofPallant House Gallery inChichester, England, which opened in June 2006. The unashamedly modern block stands next to the original gallery, housed in aGrade I listedQueen Annetownhouse, was shortlisted for RIBA awards in 2007, and won the 2007Gulbenkian Prize.[8] Wilson also donated his share of his collection, owned jointly with MJ Long, of over 400 works of art to the gallery. Wilson's share of the collection, worth £5m, included works byMichael Andrews,Victor Willing,Peter Blake,David Bomberg,Patrick Caulfield,Lucian Freud,Richard Hamilton,R. B. Kitaj,Eduardo Paolozzi andWalter Sickert.[citation needed] Many of the works were acquired directly from the artists, who were friends of Wilson: indeed, he designed homes for several.[who?]
Wilson was commissioned to design the proposedLiverpool Civic and Social Centre, but the building was never finished, being deemed "fascist" by the council.
He also designed an extension for theBritish Museum, although only a reduced version of the scheme was partially realized.[9]
He became a trustee of theTate Gallery in 1974, and a trustee of theNational Gallery in 1977, retiring from both positions in 1980. He was a member of theRoyal Institute of British Architects and theRoyal Academy. He was knighted in the1998 New Year Honours for services to architecture,[10] and was an Honorary Fellow at Churchill College from 1998 to 2007. He received honorary doctorates from the universities of Cambridge,Essex andSheffield. He was a visiting professor at Yale four times (1960, 1964, 1983 and 2000) and atMIT from 1970 to 1972.
Wilson published two theoretical works,Architectural Reflections in 1992 andThe Other Tradition of Modern Architecture in 1995, andThe Artist at Work, onMichael Andrews andWilliam Coldstream, in 1999.
Kitaj: the architects, co-written with MJ Long, was published posthumously in 2008.[11] The book's name and front cover refer to a painting made by RB Kitaj of Wilson and Long, made while they were redesigning his home. The book's contents include diary entries recollecting Wilson and Long's own design processes, and their reflections on being painted by Kitaj.[12]
Wilson married twice. First he marriedMuriel Lavender in 1955, but they were divorced in 1971.
In 1972, Wilson married the American-born architectMary Jane Long, who was later a founding partner ofLong & Kentish architects. Together they had a son and a daughter. Long and Wilson often collaborated on design projects, including for The British Library and Pallant House Gallery.
Wilson died in 2007. He was survived by MJ Long, and their son and daughter. Wilson is buried on the east side ofHighgate Cemetery.
National Life Stories conducted an oral history interview (C467/17) with Colin St John Wilson in 1996 for its Architects Lives' collection held by the British Library.[13] A bust of Wilson by the sculptor Celia Scott is on display at the British Library.
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