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80 | AUGUST 2017 PHOTOGRAPHY + RENDERING COURTESY DIAMOND SCHMITT ARCHITECTS Emily Carr University of Art + Design New Campus Project by NATALIE BRUCKNER-MENCHELLI I t's fair to say that the Emily Carr University of Art + Design New Campus Project on Great Northern Way in Vancouver, B.C. is unlike anything seen before. As the first purpose-built institution of art and design in Canada, its primary goal is to not only captivate and motivate a new generation of thinkers, creators and makers, but also to welcome and include the community at large. Drive past the new campus with its multi-toned, multi-layered surfaces that integrate vivid colours inspired by the artist Emily Carr, and you will see the team involved in this impressive project have gone above and beyond to meet those goals. "The idea came about 16 years ago when Finning International donated 18 acres of land on Great Northern Way to Emily Carr, BCIT, SFU and UBC," explains Dr. Ron Burnett, who has served as president of the Emily Carr University of Art + Design since 1996. As the first building on what was previously industrial land, the new campus had to set the tone for what is to become a new neighbourhood for education and research. So how was this achieved? First, it was determined that the building should adhere to the University's eight principles: Students at the centre; making it accessible for the public; being closer to home; making and remaking; 21st-century infrastructure; access and diversity; visibility and transparency; and to exemplify the innovation within. It was essential that the right team would come onboard to ensure those ideas were translated into a LEED Gold building that would stand the test of time. Through a P3 process, the team was chosen and extensive consultation began. "There were 53 different user groups and close to 200 consultation sessions to help create an identity unique to Emily Carr University," explains Ana Maria Llanos from Diamond Schmitt Architects who worked in joint venture with Chernoff Thompson Architects. "There were a lot of players coming together to make sure the building was code compliant and did what it needed to do," adds Naomi Gross of Chernoff Thompson. As a fast track project, construction packages were issued prior to design completion, and so structural consultants Bush, Bohlman & Partners LLP used an integrated design process with 3D Revit modelling to reduce the number of changes as the design advanced. EllisDon was an obvious choice as the general contractor on the project and ensured the building, which is located on a tight site, would come together smoothly. Looking at the exterior of the building, it is really quite something. For the four-storey campus, Vancouver artist and Emily Carr University professor Landon Mackenzie, in collaboration with painter and colleague Ben Reeves, conceived the colour selections for the exterior and created a palette of 15 colours to reflect and honour the work of the painter Emily Carr. "The exterior expression of the building was conceived as a white canvas," says Llanos. "Two types of metal cladding were used, aluminum Kalzip panels, which are the horizontal panels, and a standing seam metal panel with seams that run vertically. This range of materials helps create texture and shadows, and adjusts according to how the light falls on the panels." To the east, the building is sited to create an arts plaza that provides access to the building on level one. A loggia provides a weather-protected, south-facing veranda overlooking the Arts Plaza and to the north, a crosswalk provides controlled pedestrian access from a parking lot north of the site. To the south, the principal entrance to the university is located on St.George Plaza and accesses the building on level two where a canopy protects the entrance ramp and seating. In fact, there are three public entryways, two on level one and one on level two as the building site slopes about five metres from end to end. "The main entrance off St. George's plaza was a deliberate move to establish a prominent presence and provide a relationship to this important public space," says Llanos. "When you come in the main entrance on Great Northern Way you enter the building on level two, which is the most public floor. Here you find the concourse or central internal public space, the art gallery, a 400-seat auditorium, the main Emily Carr University of Art + Design New Campus Project Bush Bohlman.indd

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