Glenn Murcutt

The American Institute of Architects selected Glenn Murcutt to receive its Gold Medal for “the depth of his work and the breadth of his influence, which echoes well beyond Australia”, where all his works are located. Murcutt’s projects are characterized by their adherence to the Modern Movement and to local vernacular tradition. Most of his works are houses of intelligent simplicity and high ecological responsibility, like the Laurie Short House in Sydney (1974), the Fredericks House in Jamberoo (1982), the Marika-Alderton House in Eastern Arnhern Land (1994), or the Fletcher Page House (1998) and the Walsh House (2005), both in Kangaroo Valley. The small scale, as Murcutt himself acknowledges, allows him to experiment with domestic architecture and continue working on his own, an aspect that was highlighted by Tom Howorth, jury president, who affirmed that “In a time when architecture practice is all about collaboration and ‘corporate endeavor’, few individuals can claim sole and original authorship of a convincing body of significant architecture. Standing tallest among those few is Glenn Murcutt”.