AN Irish architect has been awarded one of the highest industry accolades in honour of his lifetime of work in the field.
Níall McLaughlin has been confirmed as the recipient of a RIBA Gold Medal for Architecture for 2026.
“One of the world’s highest honours in the field, the medal – bestowed on behalf of His Majesty the King – recognises Níall’s resounding impact spanning architectural practice, thinking, writing, and education,” a spokesperson for the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) said as the award was announced.
Architect Niall McLaughlin is a UCD graduate (Pic: UCD/Niall McLaughlin)A University College Dublin (UCD) graduate of 1984, Mr McLaughlin has more than 30 years of practice under his belt, with projects ranging from the cloud-like Bandstand at Bexhill (2001); the calm orthogonal pavilions of the Alzheimer’s Respite Centre in Dublin (2011) and the latticed timber oval of the Bishop Edward King Chapel in Oxford (2013); to the very simple brick volumes of The New Library Magdalene College (2021) at Cambridge University.
“I am delighted and honoured to receive the 2026 Royal Gold Medal for Architecture,” the Dublin native said this week.
“My team and I view architecture as a continuity of practice across generations,” he added.
“We are grateful to our teachers, who passed on the spirit, and our students, who continually question and transform it.
“As a small studio, we have grown and learned together.
“Thank you to all those who have collaborated with us and supported our ideals through commissioning, design, and construction.”
Mr McLaughlin, whose firm Niall McLaughlin Architects is based in Camden, north London, claims “architecture is not the production of singular objects, but an ongoing performance of development, alteration, and reinvention through lived experience”.
He explained: “At a time of accelerating technological change in design and construction, we continue to insist on the human rituals and material practices at the heart of our discipline.
“Building is an act, not an object. Architecture lies in its making and the way that it shapes learning, culture, and communal life.
“We accept this [RIBA] recognition with gratitude and with a renewed commitment to live up to its challenge.”
An architect, educator, and writer, Mr McLaughlin is also professor of architectural practice at the Bartlett School of Architecture at University College London and has been a visiting professor at the University of California.
RIBA President and Chair of the 2026 RIBA Honours Jury, Chris Williamson described him as “always one to credit and uplift those around him”.
He added: “It is fitting that Níall is recognised for the resounding impact he has had on the profession.
“As an educator, he has been an outstanding role model for young architects, while his designs - eclectic in appearance and use - share a sense of care and grace that represent the very best of architecture.
“Such sustained success has in no way diminished his humility.
“A humble visionary, his dedication to architecture as an art and professional practice has left an enduring mark on the discipline – one that will undoubtedly transcend trends and time.”
Mr McLaughlin is due to give public lecture in London on April 30.
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