Richard Horden, after a childhood spent partly in Italy and partly in England, graduated from the Architectural Association. He then worked with Spence & Webster on their competition-winning scheme for a Parliament building in Westminster before joining Foster Associates where he worked on the Sainsbury Centre, the Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank, Stansted Airport and other jobs until he set up his own practice in 1984.
Since then his work has been exhibited widely. He has also been lecturing to students in the UK, Germany and Italy. He tells us, in his recorded talk, how, from a lifelong involvement with boats and yachts, he has learned that it is possible to build elegant beautiful structures with the minimum use of materials - steel rope, aluminium, glass fibre, wood, fabrics which are quickly assembled. He points out that yachts, hand-gliders and spacecraft are demountable frame structures held together in tension and compression, onto which all the various components of their technology can be clipped or changed as required.
Strongly influenced by these techniques is his Yacht House. It is completely modular, the components small, lightweight and easily handle able, the materials aluminium, steel, wood, sail cloth. He intends making the building system available as a kit to be easily assembled by two people. He insists that it is the architect's responsibility to design for the age they live in, using the available skills, materials and techniques to achieve buildings of the highest quality.
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