Simon Smithson – Director

Simon has been with RSHP for over 30 years and has played a leading role in many of the practice’s most significant international projects. His experience spans transport infrastructure, mixed-use development, urban regeneration and masterplanning, with projects including Taoyuan International Airport Terminal 3 in Taiwan, the ParcBit sustainable masterplan in Palma de Mallorca, the redevelopment of London’s South Bank Centre, the Senedd (Welsh Parliament), Antwerp Law Courts, and the Valladolid AVE and Nivalis masterplans in Spain.

In 2004, Simon established and led RSHP’s Madrid office, delivering a wide range of architecture, urban design and industrial design projects. He was Project Architect for Terminal 4 at Madrid-Barajas Airport, winner of the 2006 RIBA Stirling Prize, and returned to the project in 2023 to support its expansion. He also led the design of Campus Palmas Altas, Abengoa’s headquarters near Seville, recognised as a model for sustainable workplace design.

Since returning to London in 2011, Simon has led the development of RSHP’s work across Latin America. He currently heads a multilingual team delivering ATRIO, a major mixed-use scheme in central Bogotá, the practice’s first project in South America. Tower North was completed in 2020, while the 74-storey Tower South and a new cultural venue are now under construction.

Simon also led the 270-hectare Madrid Nuevo Norte masterplan, creating a new mixed-use district centred on Chamartín Station, with an extended Paseo de la Castellana forming a major green corridor through the development. He continues to play a key role in Valencia Central Station, reimagining the railway station as a state-of-the-art multimodal transport hub and civic destination.

Alongside his architectural and urban design work, Simon oversees RSHP’s graphic design and visualisation team, helping to shape the practice’s design communication across projects worldwide.