John Torcapel

John Torcapel learned the craft of draftsman and architecture at the École des Beaux-Arts in Geneva. In 1924, he opened his own architectural office. In 1930, he became a professor at the Geneva School of Arts and participated in the creation of the architecture department of the University of Geneva. In 1942, he became a professor at the University of Geneva and taught there until 1953 (foreman of architectural elements at the School of Architecture).

He comes from a Protestant immigrant family from France and grew up with three sisters in Geneva. His marriage to Marthe Aline (née Berthoud) comes from a daughter, Anne Torcapel, to whom he gave up his architectural studio in 1960. His daughter also made sure that the name John Torcapel was not lost in the painting . His estate allowed Galerie Selano to honor the work of John Torcapel in an exhibition in 1991.

He promoted women as architects. Colette Oltramare (1904-1980), Marie-Louise Leclerc (1911-2001) and her daughter Anne Torcapel were among his pupils.