Name: Ewan Jones
Job title: Managing principal at 10 Design
What I do: Inevitably, I‘m involved in various types of managerial tasks, but at the core, I’m a designer. That’s what defines how I think and how I perceive the world.
Why I got into the industry: By the age of 12 or 13, I’d decided I wanted to be an architect. I chose school subjects based on that: I was the first pupil at my school who ever asked to do maths, physics and art at A level. The school timetable was not really set up for a combination of science and arts subjects – you were supposed to be one or the other.
I definitely made the right choice. I felt much more comfortable (pretty much immediately) at architecture school, surrounded by others with similar sensibilities. That choice may have been a weird mix of luck and judgement. I didn’t know any architects and wasn’t surrounded by stunning buildings as a kid, but I did play on a lot of completely unsecured building sites.
How I did it: Continuing the luck and/or judgment theme, I studied at the University of Bath. But aged 17, with no reliable advice, how do you choose where to study? My thought process was along the lines of: “Where would I like to be as a student? I’ve been to Bath a few times, I like that city, it’s about the right distance from home and it isn’t a beast like London”. At this point, I don’t even know if Bath has a university and if it does, whether there is an architecture department.
But it turned out to be a key life-defining choice. The joint school of architecture and engineering suited me very well; there were enough really good tutors to nurture and form my architectural mind, and I ended up working for several of them. The thin sandwich course with practice work each summer was immensely valuable. Studios with 24-hour access and a somewhat insane collegiate work ethic meant that, as students, we all learnt a lot from each other too (thank you all!)
My first proper job: Well, not my first one – a fish and chip shop in what was Europe’s biggest static caravan park. For the summer term and summer vacation of my second year, I worked in Bath for an Oxfordshire-based practice that had a strong design reputation, Aldington Craig and Collinge. There were two of us in the Bath ‘office’ – me and one of my lecturers, Donald Wilson. He taught construction and did so brilliantly, fully embedded in the context of how to build architecture, and how design and construction were inseparable elements of one whole.
That direct experience was invaluable: Donald was an enormous influence on my education and has been with regard to every part of my career since. When a (precocious) group of us were talking to him and speculating about our ambitious futures like setting up our own practices, he said to me: “I can see you as a director of a large practice”. He understood me and the profession rather better than I knew myself at that point.
My first big break: Having my CV picked out of the director’s bin by the associate who sat next to him in Grimshaw’s office. Twelve years later, I was a partner.
My inspiration(s): In my third week at architecture school, the entire first year (architects and engineers) were shipped down to London by coach for the day. In the morning, we went to the Soane Museum, which is perhaps a bit too much for 18-year-old newbies. But in the afternoon, we went to the Foster, Rogers, Stirling exhibition at the Royal Academy. The Stirling work left me cold, but the Foster and Rogers exhibits were a real eye-opener: they completely changed my perception of what an architect could be, or do – a real formative moment.
My greatest achievement/proudest moment to date: Of course, there are built projects that I am proud of, but people and projects are the two things that have kept me going throughout my career. So, I think the thing I am most proud of is looking at the people I’ve nurtured and mentored in my teams over many years: seeing what they are doing now, what they have moved onto and achieved (now they don’t have me badgering them!).
The biggest misconception people have about the industry: Maybe not a misconception, but I think many of those outside the industry find it difficult to make sense of the timescales and sums of money involved in major projects. Billions of pounds and planning for five, 10, 15+ year timescales are so far outside most people’s experience.
My biggest bugbear about the industry/the one thing I would change about the industry: Encouraging the public sector to better distinguish between long‑term value and short‑term cost, and to prioritise accordingly.
Where I’d like to be in five years’ time career-wise: I’d like to have developed a substantial team in our London studio: designing and building major projects here alongside our international work.
Who I’d invite, living or dead, to a dinner party: Douglas Adams.
What I do in my downtime: I have a two-year-old daughter, so I don’t get much at the moment.
The job I’d be doing if I was not doing this: Barrister or photographer.
My advice for someone just starting out: This might not be my best motivational speech, but being good at what you do isn’t enough on its own; it’s the base requirement that gets you in through the door. Relationships, who you know and how you work with others, who trusts you or values your expertise – they all make a difference: pay attention to them too.
