Oxford is known the world over for its magnificent architecture – Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Victorian, and early Twentieth Century styles. But there is also some distinguished Modern architecture (especially c.1960 – c.1990) and significant Postmodern architecture (mainly c.1990 – early 2000s), some of it loved and admired, some perhaps less so. Now we have the new architecture of the 21st century, waiting to be discovered and evaluated.

Content

Here you’ll find a guide to recent architecture in Oxford. It features buildings completed from 2000 to the present day that contribute to the city’s rich architectural townscape, and to the development of architectural ideas and practice in the city. As you might expect, most of the buildings have been put up by the University of Oxford or its constituent Colleges, but that’s not the whole story: there are important examples from Oxford Brookes University, schools and colleges, religious and cultural bodies, health care institutions, commercial developers and private individuals. The buildings featured have been selected for their architectural interest, as outstanding individual designs or as good examples in a category. Conservation projects and renovations are generally omitted, apart from a few prime examples. Most of the buildings featured are privately owned and managed; a few are open to the public while some can be visited occasionally or by arrangement; and a few cannot be seen from the street or a public area, which is noted where appropriate.

The best recent architecture up to 2000 was covered very well in several printed books and guides, listed on the sources & credits page, and the aim of this website is to pick up where these left off. Generally, buildings and major schemes have their own page; in addition there is a list of buildings under construction or in the pipeline.

This is an ongoing project, which it is hoped will provide an accurate, wide-ranging and up-to-date record, as the website is added to on a regular basis.

Structure

Navigate the site using the drop-down menus at the top of each page, by category. Clicking on any menu heading will bring up a list of buildings featured in that category. You can also find the work of specific architects from the word-cloud list on the left. Click on images to see a larger version (use the back button to return to the page). Links to architects’ websites open a new page, as do links to location maps. There is also a gallery of all the main photos.

NEW – two new sections have been added, a page of recently completed schemes, and one of projects on site or in the pipeline.

Where to go next? For a quick overview try the photo gallery, or for a taster, why not start here?

Comments, corrections, suggestions and feedback on the website are welcome.

Tim Brindley
Oxford, November 2015

Updated November 2019