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 studio our Specialist Design Services enhance the well-established role of what an architectural team has to achieve. Combining evermore diverse skills into the development of projects enriches and adds great meaning to everything we do. Continual development of shared experience is crucial.

Center for Clinical Science Research, Stanford University

2000

Elements, UniFor

2014

Join, Isokon

2025

Canary Wharf Underground Station

1999

Index Tower

2011

Cathay Pacific Lounges, Hong Kong International Airport

2013

Vea, Artemide

2024

Cove, Poltrona Frau

2018

Kamakura House

2004

Nanshan Technology Finance City

2019

The Corniche

2019

Osuu, Walter Knoll

2024

Tiers, Escofet

2024

OVO, Benchmark

2018

Foster 512, Walter Knoll

2016

Modular Skylights, Velux

2012

Foster 525, Walter Knoll

2016

ENEL Power Pylons

2000

Gabriela Hearst store furniture

2019

Djanogly City Academy

2005

Petronas University of Technology

2004

Faena House

2015

Carré d'Art

1992

Apple Westlake, Hangzhou

2015

SETA, Mattiazzi

2023

McLaren Production Centre

2011

House in Japan

1992

Supreme Court Singapore

2005

Tia, Lumina

2019

National Bank of Kuwait

2020