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George Grey Wornum (17 April 1888 – 11 June 1957) was a British
One of his earliest commissions, in 1922, was the redecoration and expansion of "The King's Hall" at the Royal Bath Hotel in
architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
.
Grey Wornum was born in London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
and educated at Bradfield College
Bradfield College, formally St Andrew's College, Bradfield, is a public school (English independent day and boarding school) for pupils aged 11–18, located in the small village of Bradfield in the English county of Berkshire. It is note ...
and the Slade School of Art
The UCL Slade School of Fine Art (informally The Slade) is the art school of University College London (UCL) and is based in London, England. It has been ranked as the UK's top art and design educational institution. The school is organised as ...
. He studied architecture under the guidance of his uncle, Ralph Selden Wornum. Badly wounded in the First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
he suffered leg injuries and the loss of his right eye, which had no effect on his subsequent achievements as an architect. He married the American designer Miriam Alice Gerstle in 1923. In his later years he spent some time in Bermuda
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for health reasons. He died in New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and was named CBE in the Birthday Honours list published two days after his death.
Achievements
Wornum was winner of theRoyal Gold Medal
The Royal Gold Medal for architecture is awarded annually by the Royal Institute of British Architects on behalf of the British monarch, in recognition of an individual's or group's substantial contribution to international architecture. It is gi ...
for Architecture in 1952.
His notability rests upon his design of the RIBA
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three supp ...
Building, the Royal Institute of British Architects' Headquarters at 66 Portland Place
66 Portland Place is an office building in Marylebone in Central London, near the boundary with Fitzrovia. Located on the corner of Portland Place and Weymouth Street, it serves as the headquarters of the Royal Institute of British Architects (" ...
, London. Wornum's entry was judged the best of 3600 in the competition for a new RIBA headquarters. Completed in 1934, the building was opened by King George V
George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936.
Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...
and Queen Mary.
One of his earliest commissions, in 1922, was the redecoration and expansion of "The King's Hall" at the Royal Bath Hotel in Bournemouth
Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the English ...
, which had been built around the outbreak of World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
and had remained only temporarily decorated pending the return of pre-war conditions.
He supervised the interior decorative designs of the original RMS Queen Elizabeth
RMS ''Queen Elizabeth'' was an ocean liner operated by Cunard Line. With ' she provided weekly luxury liner service between Southampton in the United Kingdom and New York City in the United States, via Cherbourg in France.
While being constr ...
liner and was responsible for the layout of Parliament Square
Parliament Square is a square at the northwest end of the Palace of Westminster in the City of Westminster in central London. Laid out in the 19th century, it features a large open green area in the centre with trees to its west, and it contai ...
greatly praised in an article in The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ( ...
on 13 November 1952.
His work for Westminster Council included municipal buildings and a simple, stylish design of lamp post, many of which are still in use.
His most notable work outside the UK is the English Girls' College, founded in 1935 and now known as the El Nasr Girls' College
El Nasr Girls' College (EGC) ( ar, كلية النصر للبنات) is a school in Shatby, Alexandria, Egypt. It was established in 1935, and was originally known as ''English Girls College''.
History
The college was founded in 1935 to comme ...
in Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...
, Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...
.
In 1936 he was asked by the Cities of Westminster
Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster.
The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...
and London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
to co-ordinate the street decorations for the coronation of Edward VIII. The planning was disrupted when the new King abdicated. Modifications to the plans were then made for the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth
The coronation of George VI and his wife, Elizabeth, as King and Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and as Emperor and Empress of India took place at Westminster Abbey, London, on Wednesday 12 May ...
on the same intended day, 12 May 1937.
In the late 1930s, Wornum designed the Fraser Gardens housing estate
A housing estate (or sometimes housing complex or housing development) is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country.
Popular throughout the United States ...
in Dorking
Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England, about south of London. It is in Mole Valley, Mole Valley District and the non-metropolitan district, council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs roughl ...
, Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant ur ...
for residents who had been cleared from slum dwellings in the town centre. The development was named after Sir Malcolm Fraser, who had funded the purchase of the land on which it was built.
In 1946 he collaborated with John Gloag on "House out of Factory", a book about the practical side of the design, production and construction of pre-fabricated houses in the aftermath of the Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
.Gloag, John. "House out of Factory London". George Allen and Unwin Ltd. 1946.
Notes