RENZO PIANO - INTERVIEW

Renzo Piano, winner of the 1998 Pritzker Prize and the 2002 UIA Gold Medal (among others), is one of the most prolific architects of our time, with an architectural repertoire that numbers over 50 landmark buildings spread right across the world. Today, he is perhaps best known for his iconic designs of the Georges Pompidou Centre (Paris, France) and The Shard (London, United Kingdom).

Born in 1937 to a family of builders in Genoa, Italy, Piano went on to found the Renzo Piano Building Workshop in 1980, which now has offices in Paris, Genoa and Berlin. He also established the Renzo Piano Foundation, a non-profit organisation dedicated to the promotion of the architectural profession through educational programs and activities.

But Piano, it seems, is far from slowing down: he recently volunteered his services to his hometown of Genoa, where he is designing a replacement for the Morandi Bridge, which tragically collapsed in August 2018.

The UIA Secretariat caught up with Mr. Piano just before the New Year to talk about the 1970 UIA-endorsed competition that marked a milestone in his early career: The Georges Pompidou Centre.

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General Secretariat

The UIA General Secretariat, placed under the responsibility of the Secretary General, is the Union's executive body and the administrative centre for the coordination of relations between the UIA Member Sections and their activities.

The General Secretariat assists architects and architecture students in getting into contact with professional colleagues throughout the world, from professional organisations and architectural schools to museums and media.

The General Secretariat helps architects to keep up to date with UIA activities, its partners and Member Sections.

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