Dale Owen

Ivan Dale Owen (2 August 1924 – 12 November 1997) was a Welsh architect in the modernist architectural style. The Glamorgan Archives and The Independent newspaper both described him as a 'leading figure in Welsh architecture'.[3][4] He was a partner in the Percy Thomas Partnership before setting up his own architectural practice with his wife in Penarth in 1989.[3] Among Owen's designs were BBC Broadcasting House, Cardiff,[3] the entrance building and galleries of St Fagans National Museum of History, Cardiff,[3] plus major developments at Cardiff University, Swansea University and Aberystwyth University.[3]

Dale Owen
Born
Ivan Dale Owen

(1924-08-02)2 August 1924
Merthyr Tydfil, Wales
Died12 November 1997(1997-11-12) (aged 73)
Penarth, Wales
NationalityWelsh
CitizenshipBritish
Alma materCardiff University
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Harvard University
OccupationArchitect
Spouse
Maureen Kelly
​
(m. 1964)​
Children3
Awards
PracticePercy Thomas Partnership (1958-1989)
Dale Owen Design, Architecture & Planning (1989-1997)
Buildings
ProjectsCardiff University, Swansea University and Aberystwyth University

Early life and education

He attended Whitchurch Grammar School in Cardiff, and in 1942 he went on to the Welsh School of Architecture.[4] He served in the Royal Artillery between 1943 and 1946 and was commissioned as a lieutenant in June 1945.[5] His war service took him to the North-West Frontier of India.[4]

After completing his professional training in Cardiff and at The Bartlett School of Planning in University College London, he went on to work in London and then for the Newport Borough Council Architects' Department and the Cwmbran Development Corporation.[4][6] In 1954, he won a Fulbright scholarship to study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning and Harvard Graduate School of Design as a research scholar.[4][6]

Professional career

"Gropius presented the modern movement not as a style but as a completely new approach to architecture which took full account of technical, economic and social conditions of life"

Dale Owen[7]

He then spent over a year working for Walter Gropius's practice, The Architects Collaborative, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.[4] He returned to Britain, where he became a senior architect/planner with William Holford & Partners in London,[4] where he worked on plans for the reconstruction of London after the war.[6] He returned to Wales with health problems and in 1958 was hired by Percy Thomas & Son as an associate in their Cardiff office.[7] By 1964, Percy Thomas & Son had become Sir Percy Thomas & Partners and Owen had become a partner.[4] He changed the philosophy of the practice, transforming it with a contemporary modernist style. Between 1977 and 1979 he was the President of the Royal Society of Architects in Wales[4] In 1982, he served as High Sheriff of South Glamorgan,[4] and he also served as Deputy Lieutenant of South Glamorgan.[4] He retired from Percy Thomas Partnership in 1989.[4]

After retirement from Percy Thomas Partnership

In 1989 he established his own architectural practice, Dale Owen Design, Architecture & Planning. In 1991, he became director of Cymric Building Preservation Trust until his death in 1997. Owen also sat on the RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) Council. He was also involved in the Civic Trust for Wales[4]

Selected works
  • Cardiff University, Masterplan (1960)[8]
  • Swansea University, Halls of Residence (1960-8)[8]
  • Swansea University, School of Social Studies (1961-2)[8]
  • Cardiff University, Ty Gwyn halls of residence (1961-7)[8]
  • Swansea University, Library extension (1963-4)[8]
  • BBC Broadcasting House, Cardiff (1963-7)[8]
  • Aberystwyth University, Development plan (1965)[8]
  • Aberystwyth University, Great Hall & bell-tower (1967–70)[8]
  • Aberystwyth University, Cwrt Mawr halls of residence (1967–70)[8]
  • St Fagans National Museum of History, Cardiff, entrance building and galleries (1968–74)[8]
  • Portcullis House, Cardiff (1970-3)[9]
  • Aberystwyth University, Students Union (1971)[9]
  • St. Nicholas, Dyffryn_House, staff houses (1971)[9]
  • Cwmbran, Cwmbran Sports Centre (1972-3)[9]
  • Aberystwyth University, library and Hugh Owen building (1972-6)[9]
  • Aberystwyth University, Brynamlwg (staff sports and social club) (1974)[9]
  • Aberystwyth University, Development plan (second stage) (1984)[9]

Personal life

In 1964, Owen married Maureen Kelly. They had three sons Jason (who died aged 5, on 17 January 1984), Justin and Julian.[11] Dale Owen died in Penarth on 12 November 1997, aged 73.[4] His widow Maureen died on 29 August 2019, aged 84.[11]

There is a memorial window to Owen and to his son who died in infancy in All Saints Church, Penarth. The window includes a depiction of Owen's design for the bell tower and Great Hall of Aberystwyth University, in which it signifies the Heavenly City.[12]

References
  1. "Introduction". Aberystwyth Arts Centre. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  2. "Main Building, St Fagans: National History Museum". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
  3. "The Glamorgan Archives Joint Committee 21 September 2012 Report of: 1 June – 31 August 2012, The Glamorgan Archivist" (PDF). Cardiff Council. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  4. Powell, Kenneth (28 November 1997). "Obituary: Dale Owen". The Independent. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  5. "Supplement to The London Gazette, 24 July, 1945". The London Gazette. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  6. Holland, Edward; Holder, Julian (March 2019). "Advice to inform post-war listing in Wales - Report for Cadw" (PDF). Cadw.
  7. Davey, Elaine (2013). "A National Architect? The Percy Thomas Practice and Welsh national identity" (PDF). Cardiff University. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  8. "Index of architects". sckool.org. p. 62. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  9. "Index of architects". sckool.org. p. 63. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  10. "The Who". Swansea University. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  11. "Maureen Kelly Owen". funeral-notices.co.uk. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  12. Halliday, Peter (16 March 2021). "How grey was my valley: forgotten Welsh architecture - in pictures". The Guardian. London.
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