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His well known projects include two McKeown Houses (1965 and 1994), the Church of St. Anthony in Sydney (1965), the Dickson Library in the ACT (1969), the St. Kilda Library in Melbourne (1972), the Embassy of Italy Chancellery, Canberra (1974), and Giralang Primary School and Preschool, ACT (1976).

The jury concludes: "The philosophic, aesthetic, and formal qualities of his creations are remarkable. He is an outstanding architect of national significance, who has made a major contribution to the growth of the national capital."

Immigrant Influences

Taglietti was born in Milan in 1926 and educated at the Milan Polytechnic, where he studied under Gio Ponti, Franco Albini, Bruno Zevi and Pier Luigi Nervi. He was already a practicing architect, becoming known for his furniture and industrial design, before visiting Australia in the late 1950s, when he was struck by the "sort of emptiness which was very conducive to creation."

He decided to settle in Canberra in 1956, around the time the National Capital Development Commission began hiring prominent architects to support the growth of the young city of Canberra. Since then, the capital has grown from a population of 40,000 to over 330,000, the nation's largest inland city.

In the mid-20th century, Taglietti was influenced by the philosophies and work of Frank Lloyd Wright rather than the international modernity of the Bauhaus. He was especially drawn to the idea that meaning in architecture is developed from an organic relationship between architecture and landscape. This empathy with the landscape has made him a natural advocate for the vision created by architect Walter Burley Griffin for the original garden-city layout of Canberra.

As Taglietti's practice grew, he first became known for restaurants and motels throughout ACT. By the early 1960s, he had developed a reputation as a designer of beautiful, sculptural country houses. For his entire career, he has worked on projects for the Italian ambassador. In the past decade he has also worked for the embassies of Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

In 1965, he was commissioned by the Order of St. Vincent de Paul to design his only major church, the 600-seat St. Anthony's Catholic Church at Marsfield in Sydney. In 1978, he completed the Apostolic Nunciature in Red Hill, ACT and received a Papal Knighthood of St. Gregory the Great for his work.

Throughout his career, Taglietti has mentored students and peers, giving guest lectures at universities around the world, including the Catholic University Urban Design Studio in Washington DC, Tong Ji University in Shanghai, the Australian National Gallery, the University of Canberra, and Milan Polytechnic.

Taglietti has received numerous professional awards during his long career. These include the Canberra Medallion in 1977, the RAIA ACT Chapter 25-Year Award for the Giralang Primary School and for the Dickson Library, and the RAIA ACT Chapter Residential Award for the Brett Lowe House 41. In 2001, he was made Life Fellow of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects. In 1980, he published his autobiography and manifesto Enrico Taglietti: Architect in Australia.

Awarded annually since 1960, the RAIA Gold Medal is the Australian architecture community's highest honor. Recent past recipients include Glenn Murcutt and Keith Cottier. The RAIA Gold Medal jury for 2007 was chaired by Carey Lyon, RAIA, and included Bob Nation, RAIA, Kerry Hill, Kerstin Thompson, and Robert Morris-Nunn.

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SUBSCRIPTION SAMPLE McKeown House No. 2, Watson, ACT, 1994, by Enrico Taglietti, recipient of the RAIA 2007 Gold Medal. Photo: Enrico Taglietti Residence for the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Garran, ACT, 1996. Photo: Enrico Taglietti Australian War Memorial Annex, Mitchell, ACT, 1978-79. Photo: Enrico Taglietti Giralang Primary School and Preschool, ACT, 1975. Photo: Enrico Taglietti Evans House (now Nicholl House), Cook, ACT. 1973. Photo: Enrico Taglietti Osborne House, Currandooley, 1961. Photo: Max Ahearn The Taglietti apartment in Milan, published in Domus, No. 292, March 1954. Photo: Harry Sowden   Click on thumbnail images to view full-size pictures.