Ben Pentreath OBE

Biography

Ben Pentreath is an award-winning architectural designer and decorator whose work embodies the highest principles of traditional and classical architecture, as well as urbanism in contemporary society. He studied Art History at the University of Edinburgh before attending the Prince of Wales’s Institute of Architecture. 

After working for five years in New York and then with the Prince’s Foundation, Ben started his own practice, Ben Pentreath Ltd, in 2004. Since then, the firm has grown to occupy two beautiful studios in Bloomsbury, London. Ben is also co-founder, with Bridie Hall, of Pentreath & Hall, one of London’s most distinctive interiors and decoration shops, located just around the corner from the Ben Pentreath Ltd studios. 
Ben is the author of English Decoration, English Houses, and An English Vision, newly out from Rizzoli. He is also a regular contributor to the Financial Times and writes the Pentreath & Hall blog.

In 2023, Ben Pentreath was awarded the prestigious Richard H. Driehaus Prize, given to a major contributor in the field of contemporary traditional and classical architecture; he is one of the youngest laureates of the award. In 2026 he was awarded O.B.E. by King Charles III for services to design. 

Ben and his husband, Charlie McCormick, split their time between London and Scotland.