For decades, the lower level of the Redpath Library Building at McGill University languished as a drab, dimly lit, compartmentalized box within which books and students were stowed.
That changed when the Montreal school revamped some of that standard institutional library space into the Cyberthèque — an open, stylish, technology-centered learning space that has become one of the university's most popular study areas. — Published 2009.0923
Although the last two decades have seen Vancouver, Canada, grab more attention for its elegant forest of tall, slender, glassy condominium towers, the city's smaller neighbor, Victoria, is making some waves of its own. The comparatively sleepy British Columbia capital, with a population of just under 80,000, is home to one of the most ambitious sustainable development projects undertaken in Canada. — Published 2008.1015
The Alberta Children's Hospital (ACH), designed by Kasian Architecture Interior Design and Planning Ltd., sets a new standard for family-centered care in a state-of-the-art pediatric care and infection-control facility. The 70,000-square-meter (750,000-square-foot) facility serves as the hub of the Alberta Children's Healthcare Network. — Published 2007.0725
Architects Busby Perkins+Will and KEEN Engineering, which is now part of Stantec, combined multiple green strategies within a single project to achieve Canada's first LEED Gold certification for new construction for the City of White Rock Operations Building in British Columbia. — Published 2006.1101
The histories of fine wine and of fine winery architecture have intertwined over the centuries. The design of the winery building can be central to the quality of the wine produced as well as to the winemaker's marketing image. In addition, as a new Canadian winery demonstrates, a good design can reduce energy consumption and waste during production. — Published 2006.0906
"Everything happens as if there were one-to-one oscillations between symmetry, order, rationality, and asymmetry, disorder, irrationality in the reactions between the epochs of civilizations. My own musical research on sounds with continuous variation in relation to time [...] led me to lean towards geometric structures based on straight lines: ruled surfaces" Iannis Xenakis, Greek composer and architect (1922 - 2001) — Published 2006.0816
The newly opened Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto, designed by Diamond and Schmitt Architects, Inc., combines the best features of traditional European grand opera houses within a thoroughly modern envelope. With a world-class opera company in each of Canada's three largest cities, it may come as a surprise that none claims a purpose-built modern opera house. Until now. — Published 2006.0621
A grand pedestrian promenade behind the front facade of the new Grande Bibliothèque of the Bibliothèque et Archives Nationales du Québec (BAnQ) links directly with the Metro, creating a 24-hour public thoroughfare tied into the fabric of the local community. The new library, in Montréal's Latin Quarter, houses two major collections: a large national reference library and an extensive lending library. But the 355,000-square-foot (33,000-square-meter), five-story glazed structure serves more than books. — Published 2006.0614
Designers of the new Canadian War Museum in Ottawa, Ontario could have merely created a protective envelope for Canada's wartime artifacts. Instead they designed a monumental structure to inspire a nation by integrating artistic symbolism with pragmatic innovation. — Published 2006.0125
In the realm of mixed-use developments, certain mixes of use have become commonplace: office and retail; housing and schools; cultural and entertainment facilities. But a new complex for Surrey, British Columbia, Canada has drawn attention by combining an unlikely pair: a regional shopping mall and a campus for a major university. — Published 2004.0414
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