People · Podcast guest
Christopher Hartiss
Director · Squire & Partners
London architect. Eighteen years at Squire & Partners, rising to director, then client-side head of design. Teacher, mentor and design review panellist.
- Current role
- Director
- Practice
- Squire & Partners
- Location
- London, United Kingdom
- On the podcast
- 1 episode · 2020
The story so far
The path behind Christopher's work.
Christopher Hartiss is a London architect whose career runs from the drawing board to the boardroom, and from practice into teaching and client-side leadership. He qualified as an architect in 2000 and spent 18 and a half years at Squire & Partners, rising from project architect to director.
His route into the profession was anything but linear. A spell working in a bookshop, time as a self-described "tea boy" in an architecture office, and hands-on structural and services coordination on site all shaped how he thinks about the job. At Squire & Partners he went on to take leadership roles on major London redevelopment projects, including Chelsea Barracks, the Shell Centre and One Tower Bridge.
Episode 0018 · Architecture Social · 60:26
Navigating Architecture: Chris Hartiss Reflects on Career, Challenges, and Change
Christopher Hartiss' architecture career is useful because it shows how drawings, communication, teaching, mentoring and leadership all build professional judgement over time.
Inside the conversation
6 moments to start with- 01
00:00 · Introduction and Guest Welcome
- 02
00:54 · Chris's Career Journey in Architecture
- 03
01:47 · Mentorship and Teaching
- 04
03:30 · Early Inspirations and University Experience
- 05
05:09 · Navigating Career Challenges
- 06
06:11 · Gaining Practical Experience
Profile in brief
The work and context behind Christopher's conversation.
- Current role
- Director
- Practice
- Squire & Partners
- Location
- London, United Kingdom
Continue exploring
Meet the practice behind the work.
Crafting distinctive, enduring places since 1976.
- Commercial
- Education
- Hospitality
- Residential
Podcast · moments that play
Start where the idea starts.
- 00:54Christopher Hartiss · YouTubePlay this moment on video ↗Play on video ↗
Chris's Career Journey in Architecture
- 01:47Christopher Hartiss · YouTubePlay this moment on video ↗Play on video ↗
Mentorship and Teaching
- 03:30Christopher Hartiss · YouTubePlay this moment on video ↗Play on video ↗
Early Inspirations and University Experience
- 05:09Christopher Hartiss · YouTubePlay this moment on video ↗Play on video ↗
Navigating Career Challenges
- 06:11Christopher Hartiss · YouTubePlay this moment on video ↗Play on video ↗
Gaining Practical Experience
- 12:01Christopher Hartiss · YouTubePlay this moment on video ↗Play on video ↗
The Value of Diverse Experiences
Selected work from Squire & Partners
Three projects, one connected practice.
A closer look at the practice’s work
The Broadway
Six mixed-use buildings and a new public street create a more open Westminster destination on the former Metropolitan Police headquarters site.
View project →Space House
A Grade II-listed 1960s landmark in Covent Garden sensitively retrofitted as workspace, retail, event space and improved public realm.
View project →The Department Store
A derelict Edwardian department store in Brixton restored and extended as Squire & Partners' studio and a collection of public-facing creative spaces.
View project →