Mackenzie Wheeler

Mackenzie Wheeler was established as a partnership in 1986 by Rupert Wheeler and Duncan Mackenzie. The practice operates from their East London premises and comprises 15 staff with a range of architectural, technical, interior design and project management skills.

The practice specialises in public places, whether they be interiors, buildings, landscapes or cities. Our creative work ranges from the micro of bespoke furniture to the macro of new buildings and master-planning. The vehicle for this work combines two distinct but complementary sectors, the Hospitality and Leisure sector and the Education sector, which the practice has developed in tandem for creative and commercial reasons.

Creatively we delight in the design of public spaces that contribute to our social, educational and cultural wellbeing. We enjoy the intense attention to detail and style required by restaurants, spas, libraries and theatres but also the development of persuasive visions required to plan large campus and resorts. We also enjoy the diversity of functions within such buildings where both educational and hotel developments might include bars, swimming pools, arts venues and a range of public spaces alongside their respective core spaces of classrooms and guest rooms.

Commercially this portfolio provides the practice with a sound base founded on a balance of public and private funding and on a vibrant mix of local, national and global markets. It also combines work with a very fast commercial turnover with long term projects stretching over many years.
The close combination of high quality architectural and interior design, dealing with the macro and the micro within a single project, is an unusual and distinctive feature of the practice.