[2] Grafton rose to prominence in the early 2010s, specialising in stark, weighty but spacious buildings for higher education.

The Grafton practice was awarded the 2020 Royal Institute of British Architects Royal Gold Medal[3] and their building for the Universidad de Ingeniería y Tecnología in Lima, Peru, was awarded the 2016 RIBA International Prize, as the best new building in the world that year.

[4] In 2021, the practice was awarded the RIBA Stirling Prize for the Town House building of Kingston University.

[4] They use weighty materials, including stone and concrete, to form spacious buildings which encourage interactions between people.

[2] The practice has also produced dozens of buildings in Ireland, for residential and commercial purposes as well as higher education.

Shortly after graduating from University College, Dublin, McNamara began teaching at the school along with Yvonne Farrell, where she taught consistently between 1976 and 2002.