Sir Nicholas Grimshaw has died at 85. He leaves behind a string of buildings that helped define British high tech, derived from a design philosophy centred on structural clarity and adaptability.

He also laid the foundations for a practice that has grown far beyond what he envisaged. Grimshaw is now much larger and more global than it had been under his leadership, yet it still draws on his ethos. The focus on how things are made and on structural honesty remains.

His family history included engineers as well as artists, and he said he spent hours as a child making things. The boy who loved Meccano, tree houses and boats scaled up those instincts. You can trace that hands-on spirit throughout his career.

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