Architect Clare Wright on her love of the natural world on The Modern House Podcast
As the co-founder of Wright & Wright Architects – the practice she helms with her husband, Sandy – Clare Wright is well versed in beautifully designed architecture. She’s a natural fit, then, for The Modern House Podcast, where our co-founder Matt Gibberd invites creative thinkers to share their top three living spaces in the world. Our guests often select a contrasting spectrum of spaces – and while Clare’s choices are indeed diverse, there’s one notable theme that neatly ties her selection together. Listen to the episode here.
It’s been over 25 years since Clare and Sandy founded their namesake architectural firm. They are perhaps best known for their work on higher educational and cultural buildings: The Women’s Library, Lambeth Palace Library and Archive, St John’s College in Oxford and The British Museum are just a handful of examples from their extensive catalogue. One of Wright & Wright’s most recent projects – and one that’s of particular relevance to listeners of this podcast – is the renovation and extension of Museum of the Home (formerly known as the Geffrye Museum). This does just what it says on the tin: it unpicks the ways we have lived in the past and looks at new ways of living today.
Clare’s dedication to her craft hasn’t gone unnoticed: in 2005 she was awarded an MBE for her services to architecture. Something that makes her and Sandy’s practice particularly special is their work towards a more sustainable future. Low-energy solutions and durability fuel their creative ventures and they aspire to design buildings that will look as good as they work in the distant future. With this in mind, you could perhaps foresee that Clare has a particular liking for the great outdoors. It’s this love of the earth that has inspired her three choices on the podcast, all of which have a connection with nature – more specifically, the water. Although despite her aquatic affinity, Clare’s own home is in Camden, north London, where she has lived for 30 years. However, this central location has not been a barrier to Clare connecting with nature.
Listen to this epsiode to hear about Clare’s pilgrimages to her top three living spaces around the world – and the lessons she has learnt from each place and journey along the way. Plus, she discusses her work at the Museum of the Home and the fascinating things she discovered about the idea of home while there. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so that you never miss an episode, and if you could rate and review us, we’d be more than grateful. Happy listening.
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