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INSIGHTS
PRACTICE PROFILE Benedetti Architects R
enato Benedetti’s background is, he says, a “typical immigrant success story.” His parents emigrated from Italy to Canada after World War Two, in the hope of a better life.
Once Renato arrived, they were a “huge success,” his dad owning his own business as a bricklayer and stonemason, and he had his first taste of the construction industry working with his dad. Despite spending several years on sites, by the time Benedetti applied to study architecture at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, he had never met an architect – as he explained to the professors in his interview.
“When they asked me why I wanted to become an architect, I told them I wasn’t exactly sure what an architect did,” he explains. He added that he was interested in “the things that go into making good architecture; science and maths, cultural history, iconography, and arts.” This candid approach won him a place – the professors said they’d never heard an answer like it; Benedetti adds that it taught him to “speak truth to power.” Between semesters, Benedetti gained experience working for YRM in London – which sparked a love affair with the city. He returned after graduating, and briefly worked at Munkenbeck and Marshall, then David Chipperfield, where he quickly rose to become associate. After seven years at the practice, he partnered with old friend Jonathan McDowell as McDowell+Benedetti Architects, in 1996, and the practice grew a portfolio of well- regarded projects, winning several awards in the process. Upon approaching their 20th anniversary, and working on separate projects, the duo had “slightly deviated in terms of what we wanted to do next,” says Benedetti. With a goal to “freshen things up,” they went their separate ways, and in 2016, Renato founded Benedetti Architects. The pair kept the previous office, continuing with some “major projects,” so setting up the new firm “was relatively easy,” asserts Benedetti. However it was still “jumping into the unknown.” One of the biggest challenges, he says, was becoming the sole decision maker for a business: “Being responsible for people’s jobs and livelihoods is always a commitment that I’ve taken very seriously.” Today, the practice comprises a “close team” of 10 – they all have
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Pictured: Renato Benedetti Photo © Jim Stephenson
Although only established in 2016, London-based Benedetti Architects already has a clutch of high-profile projects under its belt. ADF’s Tom Boddy speaks to the practice’s founder Renato Benedetti about the journey so far
lunch together on a Monday which essentially functions as their “office meeting.” He admits it’s a “London-centric” practice – the majority of their work is in the city, which is a “real advantage,” says Benedetti. For example, being onsite with contractors during the latter stages of the project can be “the difference in improving on that last 10 or 15% in quality.” Their range spans residential, public and cultural, and retail, as well as several important bridges; one of which saw them venturing out of London. The Terni Bridge in Umbria, Italy extends 180
TERNI BRIDGE The practice’s landmark 180 m bridge facilitates Terni’s urban expansion, improves links to Rome and acts as a “gateway marker” for Umbrian tourism © Matteo Carnevali
ADF JANUARY 2023
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