EVA JIRICNA

Eva Jiricna is a Czech born architect based in London. She studied engineering and architecture until 1962, gaining an MA at the Prague Academy of Fine Arts. She moved to London in 1968, working as an architect with the Greater London Council. A year later, she became an associate in the Louis de Soissons Partnership, and later joined Richard Rogers, before forming her multidisciplinary practice, Eva Jiricna Architects, in 1982, operating until 2017. She became well known for the interiors of shops and residential projects and mainly glass staircases but also for her work in Victoria and Albert Museum, Canada Water Bus Station, Leicester Library, Orangery at Prague's Castle and many others. In Prague she opened the office AI DESIGN with Czech partner Petr Vagner in 1999. Eva with AI DESIGN has completed many projects including hotels, University buildings, Multipurpose Auditorium amongst others. Eva Jiricna has recently established also a new London practice, Atelier AAD. Her contribution to architecture and design has been recognised with many prestigious awards, including the title Royal Designer for Industry (RDI) and Commander of the British Empire (CBE). She has been elected a Royal Academician by the Royal Academy of Arts, made an honorary fellow of the American Institute of Architects and she has been honoured with Doctorates and Professorships by many Universities. When she won the 2013 Jane Drew Prize for her outstanding contribution to the status of women in architecture, she was described by judges Zaha Hadid and Rafael Vinoly as 'incredibly influential' and 'extraordinary'. Last year she won the Lifetime Achievement Medal at the London Design Festival.