Julia Barfield

Julia Barfield, born November 15, 1952, is a British architect whose inspiration is drawn  from the way nature “designs and organizes itself so efficiently.” Her whole life, Barfield showed immense interest in the arts and science and is known to say that architecture is a bridge between the two.

She studied at the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London from 1972 to 1978, and participated in a study abroad program in which she worked in the barridas of Lima, Peru, designing community centers and houses. 

In addition to her architecture firm being awarded well over 60 awards, Barfield, herself, has been the recipient of a few prestigious awards for her work, including Architectural Practice of the Year in 2001 and the Queens Award for Enterprise and Innovation in 2003.

On December 31, 1999, Barfield created an observation wheel on the south bank of the River Thames in London. It holds the reputation for being Europe’s tallest observation wheel and most popular paid tourist attraction in the UK with over 3 million visitors per year. The wheel is known as the “London Eye.” She also created British Airways i360, an observation tower on the seafront of Brighton, East Sussex, England. The tower opened on August 4, 2016. 

Today, Barfield has been active on Twitter with posts regarding politics and activism surrounding the current climate crisis.