Foreign Office Architects
| Company type | Architectural design practice |
|---|---|
| Industry | Architecture |
| Founded | 1993 |
| Founder | Farshid Moussavi, Alejandro Zaera-Polo |
| Defunct | December 2009 |
| Headquarters | London , United Kingdom |
Area served | International |
| Products | Architectural design, master planning, interior design |
Foreign Office Architects, commonly known as FOA, operated as an architectural design practice based in London from 1993 until 2010. The firm was led by former partners Farshid Moussavi and Alejandro Zaera-Polo. Founded in 1993, FOA provided services in architectural design, master planning, and interior design for clients across both public and private sectors. After the founders ended their partnership, the firm announced its closure in December 2009. Subsequently, two new practices emerged in 2011: FMA (Farshid Moussavi Architecture) and AZPA Limited, headquartered in London and Barcelona respectively.
History
The term "Foreign" within FOA's name highlighted the international origins of its founders—Zaera-Polo hailing from Spain and Moussavi from Iran. The firm undertook projects internationally, including locations such as Japan, the United States, the Netherlands, and Spain.
FOA established itself as a prominent architecture and urban design studio, praised for integrating technical innovation with superior design quality. The practice received numerous awards and critical praise due to its pragmatic methodology that melded technical precision with concepts of organic development, merging influences from both local contexts and global trends. Their work portfolio included a wide range of building types across various geographic regions.
One of FOA's most significant achievements was the Yokohama Pier Port Terminal in Japan, completed in 2002 after winning an international competition in 1995. This terminal is recognized for its fusion of non-Cartesian industrial infrastructure with flexible social spaces.
Work
In the UK:
| Construction Period | Completion Year | Project Name | Category | Location | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003–2007 | Unfinished | Trinity EC3 office complex | Office complex | London, England | |
| 2008 | John Lewis | Department store and Cineplex | Shires West Development, Leicester, England | ||
| 2009 | Unfinished | Maggie’s Centre | Cancer care facility | Newcastle upon Tyne, England | Project halted due to budget constraints and site alterations. |
| 2010 | Ravensbourne College of Design and Communication | Educational campus building | Greenwich Peninsula, London, England | ||
| West Quay retail centre | Mixed-use extension | Southampton, England | |||
| Sevenstone Quarter | Mixed-use development | Sheffield, England | |||
| Hadspen Garden | Somerset, England | ||||
| 2008 | Unfinished | Euston Station redevelopment | Railway station redevelopment | London, England | In collaboration with Allies and Morrison; project not completed. |
In Spain: (operating through a local branch)
- La Rioja Technology Transfer Center, Logroño
- Bamboo Building (Edificio Bambú), social housing project, Madrid
- Coastal park covering 50,000m² including outdoor auditoria, Barcelona
- Police headquarters in La Villajoyosa
- Municipal Theatre located in Torrevieja
- Institute of Legal Medicine facility in Madrid
- D-38 Office Complex situated in Barcelona
- Private Villa in Pedralbes district, Barcelona
- Hotel Masaveu in Gijón
- Residential Tower located in Durango, Biscay
Projects across other European countries:
- Blue Moon Hotel in Groningen, Netherlands
- Umraniye Retail Complex and Multiplex in Istanbul, Turkey
- Mahler 4 office building in Amsterdam
- Future Aerospace Campus project based in Toulouse, France
Asian projects:
- Spanish Pavilion for the 2005 Aichi International Expo held in Japan
- Headquarters for Dulnyouk Publishers located in Paju, South Korea
- Two residential towers, each 180 meters tall, at the World Business Centre in Busan, South Korea
- Residential towers on KL Sentral Plot D site in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
In the United States:
- Museum of Contemporary Art located in Cleveland, Ohio
Among FOA’s distinguished commissions was the BBC Music Box situated at White City (2003). The firm played a key role in master planning efforts for the London 2012 Olympic Park as well as regeneration initiatives for the Lower Lea Valley between 2002 and 2007. Additionally, FOA participated as part of United Architects submitting a proposal for the World Trade Center site redevelopment in New York following the events of September 11, 2001.
Awards
| Year | Award Title | Recipient | Presented by | Purpose | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Kanagawa Architecture Prize (Japan) | Foreign Office Architects | |||
| 2004 | Enric Miralles Architecture Award | Foreign Office Architects | Yokohama International Passenger Terminal | ||
| 2004 | RIBA International Award | Foreign Office Architects | Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) | ||
| 2004 | Lion Award for Topography | Foreign Office Architects | 9th Venice Biennale of Architecture | ||
| 2005 | Charles Jencks Architecture Award | Foreign Office Architects | |||
| 2005 | RIBA International Award | Foreign Office Architects | Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) | ||
| 2006 | RIBA International Award | Foreign Office Architects | Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) | ||
| 2008 | RIBA European Award | Foreign Office Architects | Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) | Carabanchel Social Housing, Madrid, Spain | |
| 2008 | European Business Environment Award | Foreign Office Architects | |||
| 2008 | Urban Land Institute Excellence Award | Foreign Office Architects | |||
| 2009 | RIBA National Award | Foreign Office Architects | Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) | ||
| 2010 | Civic Trust Award | Foreign Office Architects | Civic Trust | Restoration of St Malachy's Church, Belfast | |
| 2010 | International Council of Shopping Centres Award | Foreign Office Architects | |||
| 2011 | RIBA Education and Community Category Award | Foreign Office Architects | Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) | Ravensbourne University London campus |
- Architectural Digest Magazine honored FOA with the Architects of the Year Award in Madrid.
Exhibitions
- FOA’s Yokohama International Port Terminal showcased at the Architectural Association, London, June 1995
- Solo exhibition during the 8th Venice Architecture Biennale, 2002
- FOA Breeding Architecture exhibition at ICA, London, November 2003 – February 2004
- FOA’s Designing Modern Britain displayed at the Design Museum, 2006
- Selected projects featured at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and Max Protetch Gallery
Further reading
The firm has been extensively documented in international monographs and catalogues, including:
- Foreign Office Architects: Working, University of Michigan Press, 2005
- FOA's ark evolving container for the proliferating singularities, Korean Architecture and Culture Magazine, December 2004
- Phylogenesis: FOA’s ark, Foreign Office, Actar, Barcelona, 2003
- Complexity and consistency, Monograph in El Croquis 115/116, Madrid, 2003
- The Yokohama Project, Actar, Barcelona, 2003
- FOA Recent Projects, Texts by Jeffrey Kipnis, Ciro Najle & Alejandro Zaera Polo, 2G no.16, Barcelona, 2001
- Agneta Eriksson, Foreign Office Architects, Eriksson + Ronnefalk Forlag, 2001