Carl Falck Architect

I think that i have been an “Architect” since I was two. My Architectural student father enticed my mother to build a house in the woods of Kirstenbosch, below the botanical gardens, at the tender age of twenty. They had no money, but it all seemed possible and it is that positivity that has guided me throughout my life. Now, with over 40 years experience in UK and abroad and 890 completed architectural projects it seems impossible. Yet, over the years in Apartheid South Africa I learned to build things whilst working with small displaced communities. I have since learnt to specialise in basement construction, project management and major engineering projects (primarily in the London residential sector). The shift in early UK work patterns from affordable Greater London Council housing, new build community centres & youth clubs, clinics and schools tracked the economy. Council houses were sold off, investment in Communities waned and two severe economic recessions bit deep into the economy. Hospital work and the provision of new health services shifted towards “Trusts” and the abolition of B2 Use Class Classification saw the disappearance of small businesses & light industry within residential neighbourhoods. Abandoned warehouses were transformed into private sector offices and mixed use developments with only some residential components. The nation of “shopkeepers” turned into the globally franchised shopping pattern and the “American Mall” model was born. Gated residential communities became dormitory suburbs. The paperless office and flexible working hours that the internet promised is still in it’s infancy and levels of waste are unmanageable.(my work on the “Tiny Leaf” project in Nottinghill opened my eyes to the issue of food waste) In addition, specialists historic buildings and preservation projects attracted grants and a love affair between antique and modern was played out over 2 decades with preservation projects in the UK, France and Italy. Even Manhattan worked it’s magic & lured me there.

Some career highlights:
I met Zaha Hadid at the Architectural Association as a student and worked with her at the Kynance Mews house for 2 years on the design of the Irish Prime Ministers House, the Hong Kong Peak Competition; and the Parc de la Villette in Paris: At the age of 26 I found myself addressing the RIBA "40 Under 40" Awards panel under the guise of “The young Lions” (Owen Luder’s tag) The Ibstock Brick Association Award & the Helen Gardner Prize for Architecture bestowed an accolade of sorts, but mostly boosted my confidence. I travelled to Germany with Peter Cook and worked on the Frankfurt Romerplatz competition (Adolfo Natalini of Super studio) and Ron Herron & Cedric Price were my mentors for the Aachen Art Gallery Competition. I developed Social Housing models, Children’s Nursery, Community centres and Local Authority work with Greenhill Jenner & Jane Sillett in Brixton & South East London: I worked with them on the Competition for La Defence in Paris. I then worked with Edward Cullinan - Architects on affordable housing at Milton Keynes, restoration of the Barnes church (after a fire), Social Housing in South London & Wolf Olins HQ: For nearly 30 years I ran 3 offices in central London’s Soho and Covent Garden and designed hotels, office fit-outs, medical centres and facilities, day care centres, playgrounds and landscape projects, mixed use developments of retail, offices and residential apartments. I was employed by Richard Rogers partnership to fit out it’s warehouse offices in Rainville Road for a commercial client with the River Cafe below. I also developed Product designs from furniture, sanitary ware, brassware and ironmongery in Copenhagen with Knul Holscher where I lived for a short time: I spent 10 Years in Solar and Renewable Energy (my companies were CFA Solar & CFA Renewable Energy) in Italy and Spain designing installations, EPC Contracts, implementation, I have built over 500 of the above mentioned projects myself with a wonderful team.

For nearly thirty years I was teaching Architecture & Design at; The Architectural Association; Manchester University School of Architecture; Scott Sutherland School of Architecture Aberdeen, Glasgow School of Art, Camberwell College of Art, Royal College of Art, Medway College of Art, Buckinhamshire College of Art & 3 dimensional Design, Dartford/Thames College of Architecture & Landscape Design, visiting lecturer at Penn School of Architecture Philadelphia & Cooper Union New York, Frankfurt School of Art, Darmstadt School of Art & Design, Oxford Polytechnic and Bartlett School of Architecture. I am currently piloting “Affordable Housing” projects in Kenya, Malawi and South Africa. I mentor artists and musicians, curate exhibitions, produce & record music and love the creativity that I inherited from my parents.