(1938-2008) 

With the death of Papadakis, postmodernism has lost one of its main figures. The Cyprus-born architect, based in London since 1956, published over two decades, first from Academy Editions and later from the magazine Architectural Design, the theoretical writings of Charles Jencks and Léon Krier and the works of architects like Daniel Libeskind and Zaha Hadid. His interests distanced him from institutions like the RIBA, which never awarded his significant contributions to the British architectural scene. He joined the world of publishing almost by accident: while studying Physics at London’s Imperial College he bought a house in Holland Street in Kensington, a purchase that entailed maintaining a shop on the ground floor. He started out with a bookshop that sold educational journals and he ended up with a publishing house with more than a thousand titles on architecture, art and design. In 1990 he sold Academy Editions to the German group VCH. Papadakis also stimulated the public debate on architecture extending the seminar program of the Royal Academy, with figures like Frank Gehry, Norman Foster or Prince Charles.