Richard Rogers

Throughout his distinguished career of over forty years, Richard Rogers, the Lord Rogers of Riverside, has consistently pursued architecture's most ambitious goals.

Rogers' major projects already represent decisive moments in the history of contemporary architecture. The Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris (1971-1977), designed in collaboration with Renzo Piano, revolutionised museums, transforming what had once been elite monuments into popular places of social and cultural exchange, woven into the heart of the city. Lloyd's of London in the City of London (1978-1986), another landmark of late 20th century design, established Richard Rogers' reputation as a master not only of the great urban building, but also of his own brand of architectural expressionism. As these buildings and later projects, such as the recently completed and acclaimed Terminal 4 at Madrid's Barajas Airport (1997-2005), demonstrate, a unique interpretation of the Modern Movement's fascination with the building as machine, an interest in architectural clarity and architectural transparency, the integration of public and private spaces, and a commitment to flexible floor plans that respond to the ever-changing demands of users are recurring themes in his work. Rogers' buildings span numerous types, scales and continents. However, all his projects are united by both a formal rigour and a commitment to the user. Over the years, he has worked with a variety of partners on projects large and small, although his steady hand remains evident in all of them.

Rogers combines his love of architecture with a deep knowledge of materials and construction techniques. His fascination with technology is not simply for artistic effect, but more importantly, it is a clear echo of a building's programme and a means of making architecture more productive for those it serves. His advocacy for energy efficiency and sustainability has had a lasting effect on the profession.

Born in Florence, Italy, and trained as an architect in London at the Architectural Association and later in the United States at Yale University, Rogers has a perspective as urban and expansive as his education. In his writings, in his role as an advisor to policy groups and in his large-scale planning work, Rogers is an advocate of urban living and believes in the potential of the city as a catalyst for social change.

We know that architecture is a discipline with enormous political and social consequences. And today we pay tribute to Richard Rogers, a humanist who reminds us that architecture is the most social of the arts. Throughout his long and innovative career, Rogers demonstrates that perhaps the most enduring role of the architect is that of a good citizen of the world. For all these outstanding qualities, the jury awards Richard Rogers the 2007 Pritzker Architecture Prize.