Pritzker Architecture Prize-winning architect Jean-Philippe Vassal discusses the architectural approach of his studio Lacaton & Vassal in this special episode of Dezeen's Face to Face podcast.
Listen to the episode below or subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts to catch the whole series.

Vassal and his partner Anne Lacaton recently won the 2021 Pritzker Architecture Prize for their studio's body of work, which is based on its principle "never to demolish" and aims to refurbish, rather than rebuild, social housing.
This bonus episode of Face to Face features a previously unheard interview. It is conducted by Dezeen's acting US editor India Block, whom Vassal sat down with ahead of his lecture at the Royal Academy of Art in London in 2019. Based in Paris, Lacaton & Vassal was founded in 1979. The studio has become known for repairing or renovating existing buildings to give residents more room and access to outdoor spaces, an approach Lacaton says is driven by the idea of generosity.
Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal. Photo id by Laurent Chalet
"Generosity is absolutely essential in any act of architecture, in any act of urban planning, I think we should be only pushed by this idea of generosity," Vassal said in the interview.
Repairing rather than demolishing
The interview was recorded after the practice was awarded the Mies van der Rohe award for their project 530 Dwellings, a social housing project in Bordeaux.
The p...