David Nelson

Senior Executive Partner, Head of Design

RCA (MA)

David Nelson is a Senior Executive Partner, Head of Design and a member of the Design Board, a position he has held since 2004. Throughout his long career with Foster + Partners, he has played a key role in shaping its creative and operational direction. He has been involved in some of the practice’s most recognisable buildings, from the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank Headquarters to Apple Park in Cupertino, as well as high profile projects in China, Singapore and Korea. As a member of the Design Board, David has an overview of every project. Each one benefits from the collective knowledge and expertise of Foster + Partners’ architects and specialist teams. The Design Board is at the heart of the design process, guiding and supporting teams, questioning, maintaining quality and focusing the practice’s collective experience at all stages. His understanding of the studio’s evolution, his open, collaborative mindset and continued leadership role has made David a key figure in Foster + Partners’ evolution; he also brings a global perspective, gained from living in Hong Kong and travelling extensively to construction sites and projects across the world.

David Nelson

In this office, with our specialisms, we've got the orchestra, but they are like instruments that play different notes, and you've got to make it into a symphony. They add to the normal role of what an architect has to pull together. Experience is crucial.

Apple Westlake, Hangzhou

2015

American Air Museum

1997

Masdar Institute

2015

PwC, More London

2009

Free University

2005

Marine Simulator Centre

1993

ENEL Power Pylons

2000

The Troika

2011

Gerling Ring

2001

Supreme Court Singapore

2005

Capella Resort

2009

Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts

1978

Jameson House

2011

Hongkong and Shanghai Bank Headquarters

1986

Leslie L. Dan Pharmacy Building

2006

Repsol service stations

1998

Addition to Joslyn Art Museum

1994

Lenbachhaus

2013

Izanami Motor Yacht

1995

UAE Pavilion Milan Expo 2015

2015

Arcoris Mont' Kiara

2019

Bilbao Metro

1995

Reichstag, New German Parliament

1999

DOT, Lumina

2016

Hearst Headquarters

2006

Red Dot Design Museum

1997

Duisburg Inner Harbour Masterplan

2003

Thames Hub

2011

McLaren Production Centre

2011

Century Tower

1991