Thomas Heatherwick: Radically more human

Thomas is a visionary designer and fierce advocate for bringing joy, interest and humanity to our. cities. Over the past 30 years he has designed soulful and extraordinary new city districts, cultural landmarks and transport modes across the globe. He now also campaigns for an end to the “blandemic” of harmful, boring buildings that are bad for society and bad for the planet.

His studio has become one of the most diverse and inventive creative organisations in the world, and the team are currently working on over 30 projects in ten countries, including Seoul’s Nodeul Island and Changi Airport’s Terminal 5 in collaboration with KPF.

Previous projects include Azabudai Hills, a new neighbourhood in Tokyo; Little Island, a public park in New York City; Google’s first ground-up campus in California; the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa in Cape Town; and an astonishing new retail district in Xi’an, China.

We are living through an 'epidemic of boringness' in our cities - but by putting human experience back at the heart of building design, can we improve our health and happiness, and help save the planet? Thomas Heatherwick, one of the world’s most innovative designers, explores the power of emotional design and the potential for architecture to re-engage the public.