Carlos Ott

Carlos Adolfo Ott Buenafama (born October 16, 1946) is a Uruguayan-Canadian architect. He became famous when he won the international design competition in 1983 for the construction of the Opéra Bastille in Paris, which was inaugurated on July 14, 1989 (bicentennial of the French Revolution). Starting from an office in Toronto, Canada, Ott has since expanded his practice internationally. Ott's practice is headquartered in Montevideo, Uruguay, with offices in Dubai, Montreal, Shanghai and Toronto. Ott has designed buildings in Argentina, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Paraguay, The Philippines, Singapore, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, the United States, and Uruguay.

Early life and education Ott was born in Montevideo, Uruguay. His father was an architect. He knew early that he wanted to be an architect. According to Ott, "I have been preparing for this all of my life." Ott was sharpening the pencils at his father's office at age three, and later made coffee for the draughtsmen and learning the basics of draughtsmanship at age five. "I'm one of those lucky fellows who knew what he wanted to do in life, at the age of five."

Ott attended a French-language high school.

From 1983 to 1993, he joined NORR Partnership Ltd, located in Toronto, the largest Canadian firm, as partner, heading the Design and Architecture Division. Under his direction, important projects in Canada and the United Arab Emirates were designed and built, including Simcoe Place (Toronto), Mixed Use Complex and Residential/Commercial Development for HE Sheik Tahnoon in Dubai, Union National Bank (Dubai), National Bank of Dubai Headquarters (Dubai, completed 1998) and Union National Bank (Abu Dhabi). A missed opportunity was the Burj Al Arab in Dubai. Ott had submitted a design to the emir's assistant, without signing his drawings. When Ott returned to Dubai three years later, he learned that his contact had been fired and that another firm was proceeding with a modified version of his design. "My building was identical to Burj Al Arab, but a bit taller. The main concepts—building on the water, a sail motif, a restaurant with an aquarium—were my ideas. The experience spoilt my relationship with myself, not with Dubai. When I drive by and look at the building, I say, 'Oh, what an idiot I was.'" The building of the Bastille and Ott's involvement is documented in the Canadian documentary film Building The Bastille made for the TVO Network of Ontario, Canada and available on YouTube. It was in this year 1983, that Ott started his own firm in Toronto. Ten years later, in 2003, it was announced that Ott's design would be constructed as the Pierre Elliot Trudeau Federal Courts Building. The Canadian Prime Minister at the time was Liberal Jean Chretien. It was planned to cost million. However, this was cancelled by the subsequently elected Stephen Harper government, to be replaced by a memorial to victims of communism. The site had long been planned for a federal courts building and there was an outcry over the memorial. When the following government headed by Justin Trudeau government was elected, the memorial's site was moved to a different location and the site was re-designated for the Federal Courts building, although no final announcement to recommence the development process was made. The design remains in limbo and the site, estimated in value at million, remains vacant.

After Simcoe Place, the economy of Toronto faced a downturn. Ott's practice in collaboration with other architects expanded internationally. His next accomplishments followed, winning the competition for the Sophien and Hufeland Clinic in Weimar, Germany in 1993, completed in 1998. Ott won several competitions in the United Arab Emirates such as: the Sheikh Zayed Road Development Project (Abu Dhabi), the National Bank of Abu Dhabi Headquarters (Abu Dhabi), Etisalat Telecom & Administration Building (Abu Dhabi), Majid Al Futtaim Project (Dubai), Baniyas Road Development (Dubai), Offices for the Al-Futtaim Group (Dubai), the New Dubai Creek Hilton Hotel (Dubai). In 1993, Carlos Ott won several other competitions in Europe such as the Salle de Spectacles (Espace François-Mitterrand) in Mont-de-Marsan, France and the Thomson Headquarters Building, Offices and Laboratories in Geneva, Switzerland.

In 1992, Ott opened an office in Montevideo, Uruguay, serving South America, and becoming the headquarters of his practice. From this new office, he completed projects such as the International Airport of Laguna del Sauce (Punta del Este, Uruguay); the International Airport of Ushuaia-Malvinas Argentinas (Tierra del Fuego, Argentina); the Punta Shopping Centre (Punta del Este, Uruguay); Torre Antel, the new headquarters for the state-owned telecommunications company ANTEL (Montevideo, Uruguay); the Libertad Plaza Building (Buenos Aires, Argentina); the Comandante Armando Tola International Airport (El Calafate, Provincia de Santa Cruz, Argentina); among others.

Ott has designed several cultural projects in China. In 1997, he was invited to participate in the competition for the Jiang Su Opera House in Nanjing, China where he obtained first prize. As a result, he was invited into another series of very important competitions such as the Beijing Opera House, the Commercial and Residential GW Plaza, and won the contract for the National Grand Theater of Hangzhou, China. He has also designed the Dong Guan Yulan Theatre, the Wenzhou National Theatre and the Henan Art Centre. Ott has an office in Shanghai.

In 2004, Ott designed the Calgary Courts Centre for the Government of Alberta to consolidate court operations in Calgary, Alberta. The building is a massive building of courts and office space. Completed in 2007, it is the largest court facility in Canada.

Some of Ott's current work includes the Atchugarry Museum of Contemporary Art in Maldonado, Uruguay, completed in 2022, and the in-progress Waldorf Astoria Residences in Miami, Florida, and the in-progress Six Fifty 17 condominium tower in Denver, Colorado. The Waldorf Astoria is Miami's first supertall skyscraper. It has 100 floors, its design consisting of nine offset cubes. The bottom three are a hotel, four through eight are residences and cube nine are penthouse units. As described by Ott, "the concept was to make an iconic sculpture that defied the laws of gravity situating the different blocks in different positions, which in addition created unique views from each space".

Design philosophy Ott is known for his iconic and innovative designs. When asked about The Proscenium project for Rockwell in The Philippines, Ott remarked "If they expect a shoebox building from me, they will be disappointed." According to Ott, creating landmarks is not his primary aim. His aim is to design beautiful buildings that work in harmony with their environment. When asked if The Proscenium would become a Philippine landmark, he replied "Only future generations can tell. A painter cannot judge his own paintings, a writer cannot judge his own book. The role of the artist is to do his work and let the public interpret it. So who am I to say if the building will be iconic? I'll just do the most beautiful building that I can."

Selected list of projects

Opéra Bastille - Paris, France (1989) Simcoe Place - Toronto, Ontario, Canada (1995) Ushuaia – Malvinas Argentinas International Airport - Argentina (1995) National Bank of Dubai Headquarters - Dubai, United Arab Emirates (1998) Capitán de Corbeta Carlos A. Curbelo International Airport - Punta del Este, Uruguay (1997) National Bank of Abu Dhabi Headquarters - Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (2000) Edificio Libertad Plaza, Buenos Aires, Argentina (2000) Comandante Armando Tola International Airport - El Calafate, Santa Cruz Province, Argentina (2000) Torre Antel - Montevideo, Uruguay (2002) Hangzhou Grand Theatre - Hangzhou, China (2004) Calgary Courts Centre - Calgary, Alberta, Canada (2007) Tata Consultancy Services IT Park - Siruseri, Chennai, India (2007) Henan Art Centre - Zhengzhou, Henan Province, China (2008) One Shenton (Tower 1 and 2) - Singapore (2011) Hotel Boca - Buenos Aires, Argentina (2012) Universidad Argentina de la Empresa -Sede Pinamar Echo Aventura - Aventura, Florida, USA (2014) Echo Brickell - Miami, Florida, USA (2017) Muse Residences - Sunny Isles, Florida, USA (2018) The Proscenium at Rockwell - Makati City, Philippines (2019, 2022) Jade Park - Asunción, Paraguay (2021) Atchugarry Museum of Contemporary Art - Manantiales, Maldonado, Uruguay (2022) Waldorf Astoria Residences - Miami, Florida, USA (expected completion 2026)

Awards 1986 - Arts et Lettres and the Legion d´Honneur awarded in 1986 and 1988 respectively by French President François Mitterrand 1989 - Award of Merit, Ontario Association of Architects 1990 - Gold Medal, Faculty of Architecture in Uruguay 1997 - Distinguished Alumni Award, Washington University 1997 - Vitruvio Award, Museo de Bellas Artes in Buenos Aires 2013 - Doctor Honoris Causa, Universidad Argentina de la Empresa