Roland Paoletti

Romano Roland Paoletti
Born	Template:Birth date London, England
Died	November 13, 2013(2013-11-13) (aged 82) London, England
Occupation	Architect
Known for	Design of Hong Kong Mass Transit Railway stations; commissioning architect for London's Jubilee Line Extension stations

Romano Roland Paoletti (23 April 1931 – 13 November 2013) was a distinguished British-Italian architect, celebrated for his contributions to the design of Hong Kong's Mass Transit Railway (MTR) stations and for overseeing the commissioning of acclaimed architectural works on London's Jubilee Line Extension. The Architectural Review once referred to him as "the Medici of London Transport."

Early life and career

Paoletti was born in London in 1931 to an Italian father and a French mother, with his family heritage originating from Lucca, Italy. During the Second World War, his father was designated an enemy alien, which led the family to relocate to Scotland. He received his education at Clongowes Wood College in Ireland before pursuing architecture at the University of Manchester. Subsequently, he gained experience working under Basil Spence in London and completed advanced studies at Venice’s Istituto Universitario di Architettura, where he studied with Carlo Scarpa and Giancarlo De Carlo. Additionally, Paoletti contributed to a British Embassy project in Rome, designed by Spence, assisting Pier Luigi Nervi.

Hong Kong

In 1975, after a period working with Palmer and Turner, Paoletti joined Hong Kong’s MTR as chief architect. In this role, he directed the design of 37 stations along the Tsuen Wan, Kwun Tong, and Island lines during the MTR’s initial development phase.

He introduced fundamental design principles that have become synonymous with the MTR identity: unique single-colour themes for each station, mosaic tile patterns, and prominently displayed large calligraphic station names. This approach to colour-coding not only reinforced individual station identities but also facilitated wayfinding for all passengers, including those who could not read. The colour selections often drew inspiration from the Cantonese meanings of station names—for instance, Choi Hung (meaning Rainbow) and Lam Tin (blue)—demonstrating a culturally sensitive design methodology.

Jubilee Line Extension

In 1990, following Sir Wilfrid Newton’s appointment as chairman of London Regional Transport, Paoletti joined him as commissioning architect for the new stations on the Jubilee Line Extension.

This extension comprised eleven stations: Westminster, Waterloo, Southwark, London Bridge, Bermondsey, Canada Water, Canary Wharf, North Greenwich, Canning Town, West Ham, and Stratford, along with a new depot located at Stratford.

Historically, London Underground architects were responsible for designing above-ground structures while civil engineers managed subterranean areas. Paoletti shifted this paradigm by appointing different architectural firms for each station but maintaining a consistent "underlying philosophy and essential elements." His internal team coordinated these various architects and took direct responsibility for the designs of both Waterloo and Canada Water stations.

Station	London borough	Infrastructure	Architects
	Westminster	new ticket hall plus two additional deep-level platforms	Hopkins Architects
	Lambeth	new ticket hall alongside two additional deep-level platforms	JLE Project Architects
	Southwark	new station featuring two deep-level platforms	MacCormac, Jamieson, Prichard
		new ticket hall with two extra deep-level platforms	Weston Williamson and JLE Project Architects
		new station incorporating two deep-level platforms	Ian Ritchie
Canada Water		new station with two deep-level platforms plus two new sub-surface platforms on the East London Line	JLE Project Architects and Heron Associates
		new bus interchange	Eva Jiřičná
	Tower Hamlets	new station containing two deep-level platforms	Foster + Partners
	Greenwich	new station with three deep-level platforms	Alsop, Lyall and Störmer
		new bus interchange	Foster + Partners
	Newham	new station comprising two surface platforms, two elevated DLR platforms, two surface North London line platforms, plus a new bus interchange	John McAslan (Troughton McAslan)

Recognition

Several stations along the Jubilee line received accolades for their architectural design, with Westminster and Canary Wharf notably sharing the 2000 Civic Trust Building of the Year award. The entire extension was recognized by the Royal Fine Art Commission as their Millennium Building of the Year, with the chair of the judging panel comparing it to Haussmann's revolutionary boulevards in Paris. In 1999, Paoletti was honored with the RIBA/Arts Council England "Client of the Year" award.

Previously, Paoletti had been the inaugural recipient of the RIBA Client of the Year award in 1998 and was named Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2000 New Year Honours for his "services to Architecture". The Architectural Review referred to him as "the Medici of London Transport".

He died in London, leaving behind his wife Nora; they did not have children.