Pawson and the significance of gritty constraints

‘John Pawson’s work is characterised
by an intensity and absence of
compromise that has made some
people interpret it as art rather
than architecture, but to interpret
it thus is to disconnect it from just
this gritty constraints of everyday
life that give it both its context
and its expressive power. Pawson’s
objectives are consistently
architectural ones and this remains
true whether he is dealing with the
design of a bench or house. Each is
grounded not in the abstraction of
art, but on a detailed understanding
of the precise grain of reality.’

From an essay on design by Alison Morris
Republished in John Pawson 1995-2022, El Croquis

Available to purchase at elcroquis.es

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Photography
John Pawson, Todd Eberle, Max Gleeson, Gilbert McCarragher