Mole ArchitectsMole Architects
Mole Architects is an award-winning architectural practice based in Cambridge, founded by Meredith Bowles in 1997. From The Black House in the Cambridgeshire Fens (featured in the V&A architecture gallery) to the Living Architecture collaboration on the Balancing Barn, the practice has been marked out by its distinctiveness, originality and personality. Mole makes buildings described by Elle Decoration as ‘not just green but gorgeous’, expressing a commitment to cutting-edge sustainability alongside a passion for colour, form and material quality. Mole’s ethos combines innovation and common sense, and celebrates individuality.
Recent commissions span a wide range of building types, from one-off houses, to apartments and yacht clubs, and clients include artists, developers, housing associations and universities.
Our houses have won the British Homes Awards, the RIBA Manser Medal, the Homebuilding & Renovating Best House Award, the Ideal Home of the Year, and the Architect's Journal Small Projects award. Mole has since been commissioned to design a wide range of buildings, from apartments to yacht clubs. Overseas, Mole worked on a new £80million ‘hillside resort’ in Taiwan, and in 2012 Mole were chosen by The University of Cambridge from 350 architects to be one of 10 firms to design Phase 1 of a £1 billion expansion in northwest Cambridge.
Mole’s commitment to ‘green building’ has been a constant throughout the life of the practice. Early low energy houses were designed from first principles in collaboration with environmental engineers, and have been used by the BRE, TRADA and others as exemplars. Mole has completed certified Passivhaus schemes (some of the earliest affordable housing to be built to this standard) and are working on one of the largest Code 5 housing schemes in the country.
All Mole’s buildings are the result of many hours of collaborative work. Whatever the scale, all demonstrate an interest in the craft of making, and are uniquely tailored to their purpose. Each building is finely tuned, and brings pleasure to the daily rituals that define our lives.
“Their contextually sensitive materialist approach is not about pastiche ‘fitting in’ or slavish copying: echoing something of John Soane’s mantra that ‘we must be artists not copyists’.”
– Architecture Research Quarterly
Principal Meredith Bowles trained as an architect at Sheffield University, The Royal College of Art and the Architectural Association in London. After working as an architect in New York, Taiwan and London, Meredith established Mole Architects in 1997. He was a member of the RIBA Awards Group 2012-2016, serving as Chair on the RIBA House of the Year Award, and is Chair of the Cambridge Design and Construction Awards. He is a vice-chair on the Cambridge Quality Panel, and co-Chair of the Suffolk Design Review Panel. Meredith has taught architecture at Sheffield University and The University of Cambridge, and served as an External Examiner to Sheffield Hallam University 2014-17. He regularly writes in the national press, and has appeared on BBC and Channel 4 programmes. He has regularly contributes to conferences to talk about architecture and urban design.
Ian is responsible for the effective running of the business, working closely with Meredith to ensure efficiency on all jobs. As well as being an experienced Project Architect with proven technical abilities, Ian is a talented strategic designer with excellent analytical design skills and heads up our housing development projects. Ian has overseen the Living Architecture collaborations and is currently working on houses in Devon, Dorset, Cambridgeshire and Suffolk. Ian has been an RIBA representative on the Cambridge City Council’s Design and Conservation panel and on the RIBA validation panel for Cambridge University, and he is also currently a professional studies advisor for Cambridge University. At weekends Ian can be found messing about on the water, running or cycling around Cambridge.
Shubhanaga (previously Jimmy) has excellent experience running large scale projects and leads the delivery teams for our large projects. He is an experienced Project Architect, with over 15 years’ experience in the construction industry, working across a range of sectors and specialising in residential mixed-use projects. Shubhanaga is currently leading the team on the Marmalade Lane project on site, comprising 42 dwellings. He was previously Project Architect for the mixed-use Eddington project for the University of Cambridge, comprising 35 apartments, a healthcare facility and an office. Along with other management responsibilities, Shubhanaga also takes care of the office's Quality Management system which is based on the RIBA Chartered Practice and ISO 9001 systems. He is also a Part III mentor and enjoys supporting the younger members of staff training to be architects. Outside of work Shubhanaga paints, draws and teaches meditation and buddhism.
Alice completed her BA and MArch degrees at Northumbria University, graduating with distinction and receiving a commendation in the RIBA Hadrian Medal awards 2016. Previously she gained experience working on larger scale projects at FaulknerBrowns Architects. Since joining Mole, Alice was instrumental in delivering the Marmalade Lane Cohousing project. She is currently the Project Architect for the mixed-use residential project in Wolverton comprising affordable housing, private sale and retail. Outside of work, she can usually be found sewing, learning jiu jitsu, or reading any book within reach.
Hugh completed his postgraduate studies at the University of Cambridge having studied architecture at Newcastle University. During his studies he received the RIBA Hadrian's Award 2011 for his undergraduate design thesis titled ‘Mind The Gap’. His final thesis, an infrastructure for the English coastline, reflects his interests in vernacular design, craft and methods of construction. Working for practices in London and Cambridge Hugh has experience on a variety of projects of different scales. Joining Mole Architects in 2014 He has assisted with the design development, visualisation, detailing and contract administration of housing projects and one-off houses. He is currently part of the design team for the North West Cambridge and Design District projects. Outside of work Hugh is likely to be found pursuing his love of film and digital photography exploring the landscape around Cambridge.
Cristiano completed his MArch at the Oxford School of Architecture and his BA in Architecture at London South Bank University. During his studies he developed a particular interest in experimental forms of preservation. He was awarded First Prize in the SPAB Philip Webb Award 2016 for his Alzheimer’s Respite Centre scheme for its sensitivity towards historic contexts. Since joining Mole, Cristiano has immersed himself in the practice and is involved in a wide range of projects at different scales including the new school in Northstowe. In his spare time, he likes to explore new places on his bike, and since moving to Cambridge he has taken up rowing and can be either found on the river Cam or running alongside it.
BSc (Hons) MArch (Hons)
Part II Architectural Assistant
Louise completed her BSc and MArch in University College Dublin. She was awarded the overall student excellence prize for the American based Envision 2040 Greenworks Design Competition and was commended as a finalist by DoCoMoMo Ireland for her proposal on Central Bank. Since joining Mole, Louise has enjoyed working on a variety of projects. When not at work she enjoys rowing, yoga and hitting as many music gigs as she can.
Susie graduated with her architecture degree from Dublin Institute of Technology in 2015. Her final year thesis was exhibited in a series of venues in Dublin and across Ireland. She has enjoyed working in architectural practices in Holland, Switzerland & Ireland and was awarded joint third prize in the 2016 ICARC ideas competition for a house for David Bowie. Since joining the Mole team in 2017 Susie has been involved in a range of projects in the office from urban infill housing schemes to one off homes. Outside of office hours she can be found practicing aerial acrobatics, painting and exploring new places.
As Office Manager, Gail supports our Directors and Associates by organising everything needed for a smooth-running practice – from answering calls to coordinating the website and facilitating all administrative tasks needed for the effective and smooth running of the office.
As well as making sure the office is running effectively, Gail also has a strong background in design, with a degree in Interior Design and over 10 years industry experience, adding valuable experience to the office.
When Gail is not in the office, she can be found in her hometown of Bury St Edmunds usually running around in a park after her young daughter or getting creative with a paintbrush or camera, and meandering through art galleries.
Team photography: © Onur Pinar
“Mole Architects is one of the most critically acclaimed contemporary architecture practices working in Britain today.”
– themodernhouse.net
Fijal House - wins ‘Housing Exterior Surface’ at the Surface Design Awards.
Fijal House - shortlisted for ‘Small House of the Year’ in The Sunday Times British Homes Awards.
Fijal House – wins ‘Best Contemporary Self Build’ in The Daily Telegraph Homebuilding & Renovating Awards 2018
RIBA Annual Awards Stephen Lawrence Prize for Houseboat (With Rebecca Granger Architects): Winner
World Architecture Festival Small Works Prize for Houseboat (With Rebecca Granger Architects): Shortlisted
RIBA National Award for Walmer Yard (With Peter Salter and Associates): Winner
RIBA Eastern Region Award for Marsh Hill: Winner
RIBA London Region Award for Walmer Yard (With Peter Salter and Associates): Winner
RIBA South West Region Award for Houseboat (With Rebecca Granger Architects): Winner
“… Mole Architects are particularly interested in producing designs appropriate for their local context, combining traditional materials and techniques with a more contemporary attitude to design and building.”
– themodernhouse.net
David Levitt and Jo McCafferty
Routledge; 2 edition
2018
Andrew Waugh and Anthony Thistleton (of Waugh Thistleton Architects)
Softwood Lomber Board & Forestry Innovation Investment
2018
Roger Hunt and Iain Boyd
Riba Publishing
2017
