Basic Biographical Details
| Name: | James Paul Associates |
| Designation: | |
| Born: | 1979 |
| Died: | |
| Bio Notes: | James Paul Associates was set up by James Paul in 1979. James Paul (or ‘Big Jim’ as he was known to many) was born in Toronto on 7 October 1929 where his Scottish parents, James Paul, police constable, and Alice Sheila Miller or Watt, had moved shortly before. They had been living in Chicago where their son was due to be born but their plans changed when Al Capone’s gang pulled up and machine gunned a restaurant near where his mother happened to be. The family immediately moved to Toronto where they opened a restaurant. The family returned to Scotland in 1930 and ran a restaurant in Portobello, Edinburgh. Paul's father died in 1930 and his mother returned to her native village of Portsoy. Though the family was hard up, James had a happy childhood. His mother remarried in 1941 and they moved to the nearby village of Gamrie. James was educated at Banff Academy where he particularly enjoyed sport. From 1947 to 1953 he studied for the diploma in architecture at the School of Architecture in Aberdeen. In 1952, he won Aberdeen Corporation's medal for civic architecture (the competition's subject was 'flats, shops and warehouses in built-up areas'). After leaving the college he moved to Glasgow where he studied town planning at the Royal Technical College, qualifying in 1954. He was elected ARIBA that same years, 1954. He then took a post with the Corporation of the City of London as architect/planner. His work there involved efforts to rebuild the war damaged city. James Paul returned to Scotland in 1956 to a post in the Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee where he worked hard to build up the Department of Architecture. He succeeded in doing this to the extent that a new building was required for extra studio accommodation for the department. Paul was appointed to design the new building on a tight space on sloping ground at one side of the College. The building which opened in 1974 was named the Matthew Building and at the time was considered to be a fine example of brutalist concrete architecture. Paul was promoted to the position of senior lecturer in 1959 and Head of the School of Architecture in 1965, one of the youngest people in the country to hold such a position. He was appointed Professor of Architecture in 1983. He held the position of Head of School until his retirement in 1994. At the same time he was in private practice, first with James Parr & Partners in Dundee from 1957-9, then with Johnston & Baxter until 1962 when that firm became Baxter Clark & Paul. He remained with Baxter Clark & Paul until 1979 when he set up practice on his own account as James Paul Associates. The practice was based in Broughty Ferry. |
Buildings and Designs
| This was involved with the following buildings or structures from the date specified (click on an item to view details): | |||||||
| Date started | Building name | Town, district or village | Island | City or county | Country | Notes | |
 | 1990s | Tannadice Park | Dundee | Scotland | Redevelopment of park including North West and East stands | ||
| 1994 | Seabraes Court student housing | Dundee | Scotland | |||
| 1998 | Dens Park football stadium | Dundee | Scotland | East and West stands | ||
References
Periodical References
| The following periodicals contain references to this : | |||||
| Periodical Name | Date | Edition | Publisher | Notes | |
| Scotsman | 29 July 2009 | Obituary | ||