Shelley McNamara
Shelley McNamara (born 1952) is an Irish architect and academic. She attended University College Dublin and graduated in 1974 with a Bachelor of Architecture. She founded Grafton Architects with Yvonne Farrell in 1978.
Shelley McNamara

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- Born
- 1952 · Lisdoonvarna.
- Nationality
- Ireland
- Occupation
- architect
- Education
- University College Dublin
- Known for
- UTEC campus · Palazzo Bocconi
- Honours
- Jane Drew Prize · Royal Gold Medal · Pritzker Architecture Prize · European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture
- Languages
- English
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Shelley McNamara (born 1952) is an Irish architect and academic. She attended University College Dublin and graduated in 1974 with a Bachelor of Architecture. She founded Grafton Architects with Yvonne Farrell in 1978.
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wikidata · Q21132821 · wikipedia · Shelley McNamara
In this article
Grafton Architects
Grafton Architects
Grafton rose to prominence in the early 2010s, specialising in stark, weighty but spacious buildings for higher education. McNamara has taught architecture at University College Dublin since 1976 and at several other universities. The Grafton practice was awarded the 2020 Royal Institute of British Architects Royal Gold Medal and their building for the Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología in Lima, Peru, was awarded the 2016 RIBA International Prize, as the best new building in the world that year. In 2021, the practice was awarded the RIBA Stirling Prize for the Town House building of Kingston University. McNamara and Farrell shared the 2020 Pritzker Prize, architecture's highest award.
Shelley McNamara studied at University College Dublin. The recorded working language is English. Employment is recorded with Grafton Architects. Works named in the authority record are UTEC campus and Palazzo Bocconi. Distinctions recorded are Jane Drew Prize, Royal Gold Medal, Pritzker Architecture Prize and European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture.
Together with Yvonne Farrell, McNamara established Grafton Architects in Dublin in 1978, naming it after Grafton Street in the city. As of 2017, the practice employed 25 people, with McNamara and Farrell leading the designs. They use weighty materials, including stone and concrete, to form spacious buildings which encourage interactions between people. McNamara described her approach to architecture as "rather than thinking of a space and then finding a structure for it, we make a structure and that, in turn, makes a space" and "the enjoyment in architecture is the sense of weight being borne down or supported". The pair have specialised in buildings for higher education, having designed buildings for universities in Toulouse, Limerick, London and others. These include teaching buildings, medical schools, and student accommodation. They drew international attention with a building for Bocconi University in Milan, which was completed in 2008. Their most celebrated building was for the Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología in Peru, which won the RIBA International Prize in 2016, as the best new building in the world that year. The practice has also produced dozens of buildings in Ireland, for residential and commercial purposes as well as higher education.
Academia
Academia
McNamara has worked as a studio lecturer at the School of Architecture in UCD since 1976. Shortly after graduating from University College, Dublin, McNamara began teaching at the school along with Yvonne Farrell, where she taught consistently between 1976 and 2002. In 2015, McNamara became an adjunct professor at UCD. In addition to UCD, McNamara has been a visiting professor at Oxford Brookes University, Accademia di Architettura di Mendrisio (2008– 2010), Oslo, and the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (2010–2011). She became a full professor at Mendrisio in 2013. In 2010, McNamara held the Kenzo Tange Chair at Harvard Graduate School of Design and the Louis Kahn Chair at Yale University in Fall 2011. She served as an external examiner at Cambridge University and The London Metropolitan School of Architecture. In addition to teaching, McNamara has lectured widely in European and American Schools of Architecture.
Personal life
Personal life
McNamara's older brother is the property developer, Bernard McNamara.
Major works
Major works
2006: Solstice Arts Centre, Navan, Co.Meath, Ireland. 2008: Waterloo Lane Mews, Dublin 4, Ireland. 2008: Drogheda Fire and Rescue Services Station, Drogheda, Ireland 2012: University of Limerick Medical School, Limerick, Ireland. 2014: Memory / Grafton Architects, with the collaboration of ELISAVA for 300 Years of Catalan Spirit, Spain. In progress: London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) shortlist for the new Global Centre for Social Sciences (GCSS) in London's Aldwych. 2015: University Campus UTEC Lima, Peru 2016: Competition Winner for The Paul Marshall Building - London School of Economics 44 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, United Kingdom 2018: Curators of 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale FREESPACE / Grafton Architects, Italy. 2019: Université Toulouse 1 Capitole Toulouse, France 2020: Kingston University Town House 2021: ESB Headquarters, Fitzwilliam Street, Dublin 2
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
1952
Shelley McNamara was born on 1 January 1952.
Publications
McNamara, together with Yvonne Farrell, published the book Dialogue and Translation: Grafton Architects in 2014. This book comprises the firm's work, architectural musings and a collection of lectures delivered at Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation. It includes a critical commentary from Kenneth Frampton.
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Shelley McNamara”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q21132821: Shelley McNamara
Reputable secondary · Wikimedia Foundation
scholarly publication
- Yvonne Farrell (b.1951) and Shelley McNamara (b.1952), Women in Architecture, 2025
Scholarly · Crossref registry · 2025
authority file
Awards and exhibitions
World Building of the Year Award, 2008 to Grafton Architects for the Bocconi University building in Milan, Italy. "Architecture as New Geography", Silver Lion Award at the Venice Biennale Common Ground Exhibition, 2012. University of Limerick Medical School and Pergola Bus Shelter, Shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize, 2013. "University of Limerick Campus" exhibited in the Sensing Spaces show at the Royal Academy. Shortlisted for the 2014 AJ Women in Architecture Awards, 2014. Grafton Architects won the fourth annual Jane Drew Prize, 2015, for their "massive influence" on the profession. RIBA International Prize, 2016, for the Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología, Lima, Peru,. Appointed as curator of the 16th Venice Biennale of Architecture in 2018. Honorary doctorate from Trinity College Dublin, 2019. Pritzker Architecture Prize winner in 2020, shared with Farrell. The Daylight Award 2022, Daylight in architecture laurate, shared with Yvonne Farrell UCD Alumni Award for Architecture 2015 McNamara is a fellow of the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland and an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects. She was the first architect to be elected a member of Aosdána, an association of Irish artists.

Shelly McNamara of Grafton Architects in 2013
Designboom
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.YVONNE FARRELL & SHELLY Mc NAMARA. UCD Alumni Awards.
- 2.Wainwright, Oliver. Irish women win Pritzker prize, architecture's highest honour. The Guardian. 3 March 2020.
- 3.Block, India. Grafton Architects wins 2020 RIBA Royal Gold Medal. de zeen. 2 October 2019.
- 4.Wainwright, Oliver. Inside Peru's modern-day Machu Picchu – is this the best new building in the world?. The Guardian. 15 January 2017.
- 5.Dunton, Jim. Grafton Architects' Town House wins Stirling Prize. Building Design. 14 October 2021.
- 6.Pritzker Architecture Prize Goes to Two Women for the First Time The New York Times, Anwar parves, 3 March 2020
- 7.About – Grafton Architects. graftonarchitects.ie.
- 8.Biography of the architect: Grafton Architects. Floornature.com.
- 9.Holland, Oscar. Pritzker Prize 2020: Irish duo's win marks rare victory for women in the 'Nobel of architecture'. CNN.
- 10.Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara The Pritzker Architecture Prize. www.pritzkerprize.com.
- 11.KTH Shelley McNamara: 'Imagining the Real' (16 Nov). www.arch.kth.se.
- 12.Columbia Books on Architecture and the City. Book Details : Dialogue and Translation. cup.columbia.edu. October 2014. 9781941332016.
- 13.McDonald, Frank. Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara: from smalltown Ireland to architecture stars. The Irish Times.
- 14.McCarthy, Justine. Bernard McNamara: The man who lost everything. The Times. 17 January 2010.
- 15.Solstice Arts Centre / Grafton Architects. ArchDaily. 11 April 2013.
- 16.Waterloo Lane / Grafton Architects. ArchDaily. 8 April 2013.
- 17.University of Limerick. Campus Facilities. www.ul.ie.
- 18.Barcelona Commemorates 300 Years of Catalan Spirit With 7 Public Installations. ArchDaily. 29 June 2014.
- 19.Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara Selected to Curate the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale. Artforum.
- 20.ESB Headquarters Dublin - Grafton Architects. www.graftonarchitects.ie.
- 21.CNN. What does it take to be the best building in the world? - CNN. 5 November 2015.
- 22.Woman Architect of the Year shortlist: Yvonne Farrell & Shelley McNamara. architectsjournal.co.uk. 10 January 2014.
- 23.Grafton scoops Venice silver lion prize. architectsjournal.co.uk. 30 August 2012.
- 24.2013 RIBA Stirling Prize shortlist announced. Dezeen. 18 July 2013.
- 25.Sensing Spaces Exhibition Royal Academy of Arts. www.royalacademy.org.uk.
- 26.AJ Releases Shortlist for 2014 Woman Architect of the Year. ArchDaily. 10 January 2014.
- 27.Jane Drew Prize Jointly Awarded to Grafton Co-Founders Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara. ArchDaily. 11 February 2015.
- 28.RIBA International Awards. www.architecture.com.
- 29.Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara appointed curators of Venice Architecture Biennale. Biennial Foundation. 19 January 2017.
- 30.Registrar : Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin, Ireland. www.tcd.ie.
- 31.Shelley McNamara – Current Member Aosdana. aosdana.artscouncil.ie.
- 32.Gelder, Compiled By Lawrence Van. Arts, Briefly. The New York Times. 23 February 2006. 0362-4331.
References
Citations
References
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scholarly publication
Verifiedreference work
Partially resolvedauthority file
Partially resolvedreference work
Wikidata, structured authority record Q21132821: Shelley McNamaraWikimedia Foundation
Partially resolved
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
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