Architects

Name:

Robert Matthew Johnson-Marshall (RMJM)

Designation :

Architectural practice

Date of Birth:

Year Only

Exact DOB:

05/01/1926

Year of Birth :

1956

Circa Year of Birth :

Date of Birth Before (Year):

Date of Birth After (Year):

DOB (1st 'Or' Year):

DOB (2nd 'Or' Year):

Date of Death:

Year Only

Exact DOD:

05/01/1926

Year of Death:

1961

Circa Year of Death:

Date of Death Before (Year):

Date of Death After (Year):

DOD (1st 'Or' Year):

DOD (2nd 'Or' Year):

Town of Birth :

Bio Notes :

Robert Matthew Johnson-Marshall (RMJM) was formed in 1956 when Robert Hogg Matthew took Stirrat Johnson-Marshall into partnership. At this time there were 14 members of staff in the Edinburgh office, including Margaret Little, James Dunbar-Nasmith, Ron Thurgarland, Margaret Brown and Graham Law.

During the late 1950s, RMJM experienced a period of increasingly rapid expansion. In its early years, Matthew’s practice was dependent on an eclectic range of competitions and small jobs, such as an experimental energy-saving house at Gogarbank, near Edinburgh. A few jobs were also inherited from Lorimer & Matthew, such as the design for a commemorative panel for the Society of Friends of Dunblane Cathedral. Many of Matthew’s designs in the 1950s were influenced by his conception of vernacular-inspired Modernism rooted strongly in the use of ‘Scottish’ materials, most notably stone. Turnhouse Airport, which won the Edinburgh Architectural Association’s Centenary Bronze Award for art and architecture in May of 1957, was a particularly good example of how Matthew incorporated the Scottish vernacular into the Modern Movement. Other projects in the ‘vernacular’ strain were a rubble and pantile Burtons high street branch shop in the Borders; Lochay, Lubreoch and Cashlie power stations in the Scottish Highlands; Crombie Hall at Aberdeen University; and Queen’s College Dundee.

However, by 1955, Matthew’s practice was increasingly dealing with a whole array of major commissions for the design of large building complexes, for example at Ninewells Hospital, and although vernacular projects still continued to be predominant during the late 1950s, it soon became clear that Matthew’s crusade for a Scottish Modernism was no longer feasible. Instead, the practice began to adopt an increasingly cosmopolitan orientation to projects and design.

It was because of this change in orientation that Matthew undertook a major restructuring of his private practice in late 1955. This decision came in the wake of an opportunity to design New Zealand House – the controversial building that, as the first free-standing ‘skyscraper’ in the ceremonial district of central London, was to become the most important individual project of his private practice. Rather than setting up a new organisation in London, Matthew decided to set up a London office which would be overseen by a London-based partner, Stirrat Johnson-Marshall, who had recommended him for the New Zealand House appointment and shared his fundamental architectural and ethical values characterised by a socially rooted, collaborative approach to architecture as a public service. The new office was set up at 24 Park Square East.

In the years to come, the workload of RMJM would be closely attuned to the increasing boom in public sector construction with projects including schools (in Scotland and England), community facilities such as the Royal Commonwealth Pool, hospitals (Ninewells, Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, Dundee), new universities (Stirling, York, Bath and Coleraine), and housing and regeneration. Reflecting wider architectural trends in the late 1950s and early 1960s, many of these projects rejected the former humanistic vernacular orientation in favour of urban renewal and large-scale redevelopment projects, often incorporating multi-storey design solutions. This shift is apparent in the scheme of 18-storey towers and four- and three-storey terraces for Area B of Hutchesontown/Gorbals Redevelopment Area (1958-64); the controversial George Square redevelopment incorporating RMJM’s 12-storey David Hume Arts Tower (opened 1963); or the abortive scheme for a 17-storey block for the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary redevelopment.

In the 1960s Tom Spaven, John Richards, Kenneth Graham, Chris Carter, Vernon Lee and Alan Whiteman were all taken into partnership, the practice title changing to Robert Matthew, Johnson-Marshall & Partners in 1961. (See separate entry for subsequent practice history.)

Bio Notes continued...

Additional Notes

The following private or business addresses are associated with this person:

Business Addresses2 classic

Address	Class	Date From
8 Palmerston Place Edinburgh Scotland	Business	195
24 Park Square East London England	Business	1956
Alva Street Edinburgh Scotland	Business	1957
31 Regent Terrace Edinburgh Scotland	Business	1960

row(s) 1 - 4 of 4

The following individuals were employed or trained by this person (click on an item to view details):

Employees or Pupils2 classic

Name	Name Link	Date From	Date To	Position	Notes
Rachel Wilson	401408	1950s		Architect	Housing specialist
Ken Feakes	405009	1957/04		Architect	London office
Gaston Gottier	405061	1957/08		Architect
Emily Lind Maclennan (Mrs Linda Westwater)	204553	1957/08	After 1959	Architect
John Lamb Paterson	401370	1957/10	In year 1961	Architect
Kenneth Edward Graham	400426	1958/05	In year 1961	Architect
Graham Dickson	405258	1959 or 1960	In year 1961	Architect
Euan Kidston Colam	401606	1960/04/01	In year 1961	Architect
Andrew Dunsire	406854	1960s		Architect
Michael ('Mick') Alexander Haig Duncan	402768	1970s	1990s	Architect
Peter Arthur Newnham	402095	Before 1956	In year 1961	Architect
Albert Ferdinand Donal Crawley	400847	Before 1958	In year 1961	Architect
David Smith Sturrock	404964	Before 1960	In year 1961	Architect
George Duncan	405008	Before 1960	In year 1961		Member of planning team.
Thomas ('Tom') Riddell Spaven	400270	In year 1956	In year 1961	Senior Assistant

row(s) 1 - 15 of 34

This person was involved with the following buildings or structures from the date specified (click on an item to view details):

Buildings and Designs2 classic

Building Name	Date Started	Town, District or Village	City or County	Country	Notes
University of Aberdeen, Masterplan	In year 1857		Aberdeen	Scotland
Cumnock Redevelopment plan	1950s	Cumnock	Ayrshire	Scotland	Redevelopment plan
Lubreoch Power Station	In year 1956	Innerwick, Glen Lyon	Perthshire	Scotland	Generating station - begun before partnership was formed
Lochay (Killin) Power Station	In year 1956	Glen Lochay	Perthshire	Scotland	Begun before partnership was formed
Kincardine Power Station	In year 1956	Kincardine-on-Forth	Fife	Scotland
Cashlie Hydro-Electric Power Station	In year 1956	Glen Lochay	Perthshire	Scotland	Generating station - begun by Matthew before partnership, continued by RMJM & Partners after 1961
Ninewells Hospital and Medical School	In year 1956		Dundee	Scotland	Begun prior to partnership, continued under subsequent practice title
New Zealand House	In year 1956		London	England	Begun prior to this practice title and completed under subsequent one
Edinburgh Royal Infirmary	In year 1956		Edinburgh	Scotland	Phase I - redevelopment (begun prior to partnership, continued by RMJM & Partners after 1961)
Firrhill Secondary School	In year 1956	Firrhill	Edinburgh	Scotland
Millbuies House	In year 1956	Gogarbank	Edinburgh	Scotland
Multi-storey flats, Spey Street	c. 1956		Edinburgh	Scotland	Unsuccessful competition design
Barshare Housing and comprehensive town plan	In year 1957	Cumnock and Holmhead Burgh	Ayrshire	Scotland
St John's Boarding School	In year 1957		Singapore	Singapore	Continued under subsequent practice title
Queen's College	In year 1957		Dundee	Scotland

row(s) 1 - 15 of 27

The following books contain references to this person:

Bib ref classic

Author	Title	Date	Publisher	Notes
Glendinning, Miles	Rebuilding Scotland: The Postwar Vision, 1945-75	1997	Tuckwell Press Ltd	p16 George Square redevelopment - Arts Towerp17 p17-18, p29, p180-1 Queen's College, Dundee p18-19, p157, p170 Kincardine Power Stationp25 Midlothian County Buildingsp28p165-7 University of Edinburgh George Square Redevelopment
RCAHMS	Dundee on Record	1992	RCAHMS	University of Dundee, The Tower - p56
Glendinning, Miles	Modern architect: the life and times of Robert Matthew	2008	RIBA Publishing
Willis, Peter	New architecture in Scotland	1977		p7, p10p92-5 Ninewells Hospital
RCAHMS	Homebuilders: Mactaggart & Mickel and the Scottish housebuilding industry	1999	RCAHMS	p 86, 224, 232, 234, 241, 252
Glendinning, Miles and Muthesius, Stefan	Tower Block: Modern Public Housing in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland	1994	Yale University Press: New Haven and London	p169, p228, p368 Hutchesontown, Area B

row(s) 1 - 6 of 6

Basic Biographic Details

Addresses

Business Addresses

Business Addresses2 classic

Employees or Pupils

Employees or Pupils2 classic

Buildings and Designs

Buildings and Designs2 classic

References

Bibliographic References

Bib ref classic