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.

Project Experience

Palace of Peace and Reconciliation

2006

Gather, Escofet

2024

Century Tower

1991

Orsa, Artemide

2016

Shanghai Jiushi Corporation

2001

Foster 525, Walter Knoll

2016

Arcoris Mont' Kiara

2019

Old Spitalfields Market

2017

Le Dôme Winery

2021

House in Japan

1992

Flo, Lumina

2012

20-06 Emeco

2006

Osuu, Walter Knoll

2024

Nanshan Technology Finance City

2019

Deutsche Bank Place

2005

Index Tower

2011

Hongkong and Shanghai Bank Headquarters

1986

UAE Pavilion Milan Expo 2015

2015

Samson Pavilion, CWRU and Cleveland Clinic

2019

Center for Clinical Science Research, Stanford University

2000

Node, Lindner Parc

2017

Petronas University of Technology

2004

Apple Park

2017

The Troika

2011

Free University

2005

Foster 510, Walter Knoll

2008

Bilbao Metro

1995

LEVA, Mattiazzi

2019

Capella Resort

2009

Arc, Molteni&C

2010