Irish architect Shane de Blacam wins the 2023 Royal Academy Architecture Prize

Dublin-based architect Shane de Blacam has been named the fifth overall winner of the Royal Academy Architecture Prize in recognition of his “inspiring” contributions to the profession, which began in earnest in the Irish capital in the early-1960s. 

An RA jury chaired by Niall McLaughlin complemented the 78-year-old de Blacam for his “commitment to communal spaces for learning, exchange and contemplation.” De Blacam also worked in the United States for Louis I. Kahn after completing his graduate studies at the University of Pennsylvania, eventually returning to his home country to found the award-winning De Blacam & Meagher in 1976. 

“[Shane] de Blacam’s buildings demonstrate a pleasure in simple local materials, combining load-bearing masonry and joinery. In both new buildings and sensitive historic restorations, de Blacam’s practice reminds us of the power of craftsmanship to create spaces where we can come together for stillness and reflection. His work has been a powerful influence on contemporary Irish architecture, and he is an inspirational figure for those he has taught and worked with,” the jury comment reads. 

“The first architect of the Royal Academy, William Chambers, built a masterpiece that he never saw, a small building north of Dublin city called the Casino, completed in the late eighteenth century,” de Blacam added in a statement. “I have learnt all that I know and love about that period of European architecture from this building. On behalf of myself and the young architects at the practice, as well as partners John Meagher and Andy Richardson, and all those who designed and drew our buildings, we are humbled, grateful and honored to be recognized in the company of painters, sculptors and others, at the Royal Academy in London.”

De Blacam was joined by four finalists for the £10,000 ($12,700 USD) Dorfman Award, the winner of which will be announced on November 2nd as part of the Royal Academy Architecture Awards Week. A special presentation of his work will be conducted at the Academy's Benjamin West Lecture Theatre at 6:30 pm on October 31st. 

More information about the 2023 Royal Academy Architecture Awards Ceremony can be found here.