Rafael Moneo

The only Spaniard to have received the prestigious Pritzker Prize, Moneo was bestowed with this Gold Medal by the Spanish Council of Architectural Associations in the award’s 25th year of existence. After receiving a degree in architecture from the Madrid School in 1961, he spent two years in the studio of Jørn Utzon before receiving a scholarship from the Spanish Academy in Rome in 1961. These two experiences, Scandinavian and Italian, have influenced a large part of his extensive body of work, defined by the sobriety of materials, geometric strength, and sensitivity towards the contexts in which his buildings are found. The jury also placed great value on the fact that he has been teaching since 1966, first at Madrid’ s School of Architecture, later in Barcelona, and since 1995 as a professor in the Graduate School of Design at Harvard, occupying the Josep Lluís Sert chair. Internationally recognized for projects such as the Cathedral of Our Lady in Los Angeles, he has also had several recent works in Spain: the José Beulas Foundation in Huesca, the Bank of Spain building in Madrid, and the expansion of the Prado Museum.