My husband, Theo Matoff, who has died aged 92, was a lecturer in structure who rose to turn out to be head of the colleges of structure at two polytechnics – in Plymouth after which Leicester.
Theo was born in Vancouver, Canada, to Miriam (nee Lando) and her husband, Conrad, and went to Magee highschool within the metropolis. His mother and father collectively owned a fur firm, however when he was 19 they moved to Los Angeles to run a division retailer and he went with them.
Having turn out to be an American citizen, in 1954 he was conscripted into the US military for 2 years, and managed to get himself despatched to Paris, the place he attended the ateliers of André Lhote and Ossip Zadkine and drew in his spare time at Académie de la Grande Chaumière (an artwork college). It was in Paris that he additionally met Ute Happ, a German lady, whom he married in 1957.
When Theo was launched from the military they moved to Florence in Italy, the place he studied for 4 years on the college and obtained a doctorate in structure. In 1960 he and Ute moved to California, the place he labored for architectural corporations in San Francisco, together with Richard Neutra, Gruen Associates and Frank Lloyd Wright.
In 1963 he started educating on the College of Manitoba in Canada, and likewise constructed two homes there for purchasers, whereas taking over invites to turn out to be a visiting lecturer in Germany and Israel.
He got here to England in 1970 to be a senior lecturer at Leeds Polytechnic College of Structure, then head of the College of Structure at Plymouth Polytechnic (now the College of Plymouth, 1976-81) and at Leicester Polytechnic (now De Montfort College) till his retirement in 1988.
His first marriage having led to divorce, I met Theo within the mid-80s after I was convention and advertising and marketing supervisor on the Royal Institute of British Architects and located it unattainable to keep away from his massive and provocative presence when he visited the Riba premises. A reference he used when making use of for job openings learn: “He’s removed from being a peaceable man, and his presence in any gathering can’t be ignored. He won’t use one phrase if 10 can do equally properly, however there may be no query about his deep concern for training and structure.”
In Leicester Theo constructed a home in a conservation space, not with out opposition from some conservative planning officers. The objections had been overcome when the chairman declared that “in 50 years they’ll all be wanting homes like Matoff’s”.
We married in 1989 and in retirement moved to Bushey Heath in Hertfordshire, the place Theo constructed a studio during which to color. His works had been proven in London, Tunbridge Wells, Plymouth, Glasgow, St Ives and Wiesbaden in Germany, and had been purchased for personal collections around the globe.
He’s survived by me, his three daughters, Lisa, Matina and Noel, from his first marriage, grandsons Ben and Jakob, three great-grandchildren and his siblings, Daniela and Richard.
