John Michael Grice [commonly known as Michael Grice] was born in London, England on 18 February 1917 and was the son of the architect William Stanley Grice (1889-1952). He attended the Architectural Association School in London and in 1936-37 worked in the office of the Swedish architect Erik Gunnar Asplund (1885-1940) in Stockholm.
In 1939 Grice was one of the eleven founding partners of Architects’ Co-operative Partnership (ACP) [in 1951 renamed Architects' Co-Partnership (ACP)], an architectural co-operative all of whom had attended the AA School.
Following the outbreak of World War Two in September 1939, ACP was dissolved. During the war Grice served with the Royal Engineers in India.
In 1946 the ACP was re-formed with eight of the original partners, including Grice. He subsequently remained a partner in the co-operative for the rest of his career as an architect.
Works by Grice as a partner of ACP included several projects in the public sector, mainly schools. For the 1951 Festival of Britain site on the South Bank, London, he was responsible for the design of the York Road screen, canvas pennants, and a cafe.
In 1954 Grice together with fellow ACP partner Leo de Syllas (1917-1964) opened an ACP office in Lagos, Nigeria. During his time in Nigeria, Grice designed a number of schools, office blocks and a hotel. The Nigerian office closed in 1962, and Grice returned to working in Britain. The office They also designed a large housing development in Akosombo, Ghana.
In the 1960s Grice oversaw an ACP commission to build student residences at Goldney House, University of Bristol. He was also involved in the building of the Brigade of Guards' depot at Pirbright, Surrey, and the rehousing of the Royal Corps of Signals at Blandford Camp, Dorset.
In the 1970s with the dearth of commissions in the UK, ACP turned to the Middle East for work. During the decade Grice was involved in the design of an abattoir in Khartoum, Sudan; a hospital in Saudi Arabia; and a hospital and faculty of medicine in Baghdad, Iraq.
Grice was elected an Associate of the Royal Institute of British Architects (ARIBA). In his latter years as an architect, he worked as a consultant to ACP. His address was given as 75 Chesil Court, Chelsea, London in 1939. He died in London on 20 December 2008
‘Architects’ Co-Partnership’. Journal of the Royal Institute of British Architects vol. 74, 1967 pp. 229-238
Cox, Anthony. Architects Co-Partnership: the first 50 years. Potters Bar:, Hertfordshire Architects Co-Partnership, 1989
Powers, Alan. ‘Chapter 8. Architects’ Co-Partnersip’ in in British Design: Tradition and Modernity after 1948, edited by Ghislaine Wood. London: Bloomsbury Academic, pp. 113-126