Giles Reid Architects
Giles Reid Architects is an RIBA Chartered Practice, based in Kew Gardens, London, undertaking work across London and the south west of England. Giles studied architecture at Auckland University, New Zealand. He established his practice in 2016. His work is informed by ongoing research, critical writing, publishing and academic engagement.
The practice creates buildings with a straight-forward relaxed character. We work with natural materials and take considerable care to understand them and detail them appropriately. This forms the basis of any architecture that aims to be sustainable and endure.
The relationship between a building and its context should, we believe, be self-evident and grounded in history. Each project is a creative response to the specific needs of the client and site and also, the wider community.
We like interiors which are spare, where the construction is quietly expressed and the hand of the architect recedes. The focus of each room is on natural lighting and the traditional elements through which that light enters the room - windows, rooflights and doors.
We admire the carpenter’s approach to classicism, such as you find in Edwardian joiner’s manuals or practiced by certain mid-century New Zealand architects. Constant care over dimension and proportion can create strong bonds between everyday things.
“I like the unlaboured thing, that looks as inevitable as something that comes out of a frying pan just right, like an omelette in France, for instance.” William Wilson Wurster
Visit gilesreidarchitects.com