The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) and the Canada Council for the Arts (CCA) have announced the recipients of the 2022 Governor General’s Medals in Architecture.
The biennial awards recognize and celebrate excellence in recently built—and designed—projects completed by Canadian architects. The 2022 competition continues a tradition initiated by the Massey Medals in 1950, providing an important source of understanding of the nature of Canadian architecture and the regional, cultural, and historic forces expressed in the built environment.
The 12 projects represent a variety of building types and sizes—from a commercial mixed-use space to a cottage to various institutional building configurations. They include a reimagined theatre, a forest pavilion, a stormwater facility, and a history and dialogue centre.
Winning projects come from across the country—from five Canadian provinces, along with two recipients from New York and New Jersey, USA.
The following are the 2022 recipients:
- 60_80 Atlantic Avenue, Toronto, ON, BDP Quadrangle
- Forest Pavilion, Winnipeg, MB, Public City Architecture
- Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre, Vancouver, BC, Formline Architecture
- Julis Romo Rabinowitz Building & Louis A. Simpson International Building, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, KPMB Architects
- Les Rochers, Bassin, QC, la Shed Architecture
- Point William Cottage, Muskoka Lakes, ON, Shim-Sutcliffe Architects
- Reception Pavilion of the Québec National Assembly, Quebec, QC, Provencher_Roy & GLCRM Architects
- Cherry Street Stormwater Facility, Toronto, ON, gh3* and R.V. Anderson Associates Limited
- The Brearley School, New York, NY, KPMB Architects
- The Idea Exchange Old Post Office, Galt, ON, RDH Architects (RDHA)
- Tom Patterson Theatre, Stratford, ON, Hariri Pontarini Architects
- Village at the End of the World, Kingsburg, NS, MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects
Formline Architecture is the first Indigenous-owned architectural firm ever to be awarded the Governor General’s Medal for Architecture. This is the second GG Medal awarded to a design by Alfred Waugh, the first being in 2004 for the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology, completed by Waugh as the project designer when he was working for Peter Busby and Associates Architects.
“This is tremendous recognition and a shot in the arm for my fellow status and Métis architects across the country—it means validation from peers that our designs have risen to the highest levels. All Canadians can be proud of this new ‘Indigenuity,’ as I like to call it,” says Formline’s founder/owner Alfred Waugh FRAIC.
Says John Brown, President of the RAIC, “The projects represented in this year’s recipients of the Governor General’s Medals in Architecture illustrate design excellence in a variety of building typologies through their contextual response, sustainability and creativity. The thought and consideration of our award-winning Canadian architects taken in each project demonstrates their ability to produce dynamic spaces that are not only beautiful, but enlivening and enriching, enabling us to learn and grow. The RAIC is proud to empower, advocate and celebrate these architects and Canada’s architectural community as a whole in an effort to create a better world for all.”
“As we honor exceptional building across Canada, it seems only fitting to consider how aesthetics, sustainability and price affect both community and the environment,” said Simon Brault, Director and CEO of the Canada Council for the Arts. “Our heartfelt congratulations and thanks to the 12 remarkable projects selected to receive a 2022 Governor General’s Medal in Architecture for their substantive contributions to the art of architecture in Canada.”