Ion Enescu (1951-2014)

Born in 1951, Ion (Oni) Enescu graduated in 1976 from the Ion Mincu Institute of Architecture in Bucharest. In the twelve years that followed after graduation, in parallel with his design activity, he taught at the faculty and collaborated permanently with the magazine Arhitectura.

He moved to Paris in 1988 and joined the Ateliers 115 architectural practice. Through the quality of his work and his influence on the studio's output, he became one of the leading architects on the team. In 1997 he became associate architect and managing director of the company.

He gained the trust of his clients through hard work and the quality of his projects, and went on to work for the most important architectural clients in France. His professionalism and his human qualities have made his relationship with his clients a true friendship.

One of his first French projects was the headquarters of the "Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Development Bank" (scd 35,000^m2) at Maisons-Alfort in eastern Paris, on the banks of the Marne. The building was completed in 1996, and thousands of people work in it, in a particularly verdant and light setting. A whole series of office projects followed: Aerospace Research Center in Suresnes, AFNOR headquarters in Saint Denis, CANAL + headquarters in Issy -les-Moulineaux, the EADS office complex in Suresnes, etc.

In 2009, Ion Enescu was contacted by the Bouygues Immobilier group for the realization of the first positive energy office building in France, GREEN OFFICE.

With its generous volumes, accessible terraces, quality and optimization of natural light, the building - completed in 2011 - offers pleasant workspaces. The energy performance contributes to the comfort and balance of the staff.

The Green Office building was awarded the PYRAMIDE D'ARGENT Award for inventiveness in 2011 and the ENERGY POSITIVE Award in 2014 by the ARCHI DESIGN CLUB AWARDS.

The main leader of Atelier 115, of a team of forty collaborators, Ion Enescu was present day after day "at the drawing board", always vigilant and attentive to his collaborators.

Respectful towards his elders, he shared his experience with the younger ones. He organized study trips to European capitals for them every year to give them a broader perspective and increase their professional knowledge.

It has maintained a close link with the University of Architecture in Bucharest, sitting on the jury for their diploma exams and hosting Romanian students and architects for internships. In 2012, the University of Architecture of Bucharest awarded him the BENE MERENTI Medal for his professional career.

Very sensitive to the strong ties that have united Romania with France, deeply attached to French culture, he created in 2013 the association "PARLONS EN", to promote French culture and language through contacts and exchanges between students from French-speaking countries.