Sergison Bates architekten (Zürich)

Where do we come from? Founded in 1996, we started small: Our first commission was for a public house in Walsall, which won the award for best new building in 1999. This was the beginning of our interest in public architecture. Other interesting projects followed: a prototype for suburban housing in Stevenage - our first exploration of social housing, a studio house in Bethnal Green and the conversion of a former paint factory into a residential building.

Over the years our focus has broadened both geographically and typologically, as has the recognition of our work. We were awarded the Schelling Prize for Architecture and the Tessenow Gold Medal in 2006. A number of RIBA awards and international prizes followed.

From the beginning we have engaged with the debate within the profession through lectures and writing, and curated a series of exhibitions on the themes we continue to explore in our projects: Masonry Construction; Affordable Housing; the Relationship Between Thinking and Making; and Teaching and Practicing.