WINNER OF A 2023 CANADIAN ARCHITECT AWARD OF MERIT
A simple and refined approach to museum design. The overall massing is lighthearted and creates relationships with the landscape at varying scales and proportions. There is an alternating relationship with light and view between foreground and background which creates visual interest. The interior material palette is refined and not over-designed. The museum recalls the simplicity of an earlier age of modernism in a way that is both soothing and nostalgic. — Omar Gandhi, juror
This unexpectedly low-key threshold onto the SFU Burnaby campus makes you appreciate the native landscape prior to experiencing the drama of the original Erickson campus. The interior is a simple set of spaces that you can imagine will let the art speak for itself, while also allowing visitors to appreciate the natural setting. — Michael Heeney, juror
The Marianne and Edward Gibson Art Museum—“the Gibson”—is a gateway project for Simon Fraser University’s Burnaby Mountain main campus. Its location at the arrival plaza speaks to the importance of the facility’s role as a bridge between the academic and local communities. The gallery will serve as an educational resource and venue for collecting and exhibiting art; as well, it will offer a welcoming and easily accessible amenity for the growing, mixed-use community that shares the plaza and neighbouring transportation hub.
In terms of sustainability, this is a Class A gallery with enhanced air quality systems and controlled acoustics. LEED Gold registered, this low-emission building will be completely electric and connected to BC’s low carbon grid. The structure extends across the site as a series of interconnected spaces all on one level, aligning with the original 1963 architectural vision by Arthur Erickson and Geoffrey Massey. The building establishes a strong connection to nature in materiality and form. Wings of the gallery reach out to the surrounding trees like extended arms of an embrace, with expansive views to the woods and mountains beyond.
The mass-timber framework reinforces this bond to the building’s forest setting. The timber ceiling is both a structural system and expression of its environment. The use of brick reinforces the sense of craft that delineates the building form, which has been sculpted by the trees. Program space includes three formal galleries, a seminar room, a library, two areas for small and large gatherings, an art studio, an outdoor courtyard, offices, a preparation area, and art storage space.
Floor-to-ceiling glazing creates an open and welcoming presence that reinforces the gallery’s role as a bridge between the university and the community. Upon entering, a large informal gathering space beckons with the warmth and rustic feel of natural materials and a fireplace. The central axis is organized to provide a circulation path that runs alongside the campus ceremonial walkway. In this way, a connection to nature and the outdoors permeates the interior space. Community rooms and a lounge open to the public serve as attractions off the main entrance and blur the line between education and community use.
The museum’s footprint will occupy roughly one-quarter of the site, leaving the rest to be renaturalized. This amount of green space and the proposed tree canopy encourage a diverse habitat, rainwater management and an outdoor environment to be enjoyed by all.
The open design, interconnected salons, and large gathering space overlooking the central plaza help assure accessibility and inclusivity. Informed by Indigenous input and knowledge, the design reinforces the university’s commitment to creative experimentation, collaboration, and meaningful engagement.
CLIENT Simon Fraser University | ARCHITECT TEAM Hariri Pontarini Architects (Design Architect)—Siamak Hariri FRAIC, Doron Meinhard, Jaimie Howard, Ladan Nicknam, Lindsay Hochman, Ramin Movasagh, Nasim Marefat, Steve Kang. Iredale Architecture (Architect of Record)—James Emery MRAIC, Denis Gautier, Susanna Houwen, John Viera MRAIC, Hayley Robbins, Tong Zheng, Ilya Dorakhau | STRUCTURAL Read Jones Christoffersen Ltd. (RJC) | MECHANICAL/ELECTRICAL Introba | CIVIL Stantec | LIGHTING Introba | LANDSCAPE Durante Kreuk | ENVELOPE Read Jones Christoffersen Ltd. (RJC) | ENERGY MODELLING Scott Construction Group | CONTRACTOR Scott Construction Group | AREA 1,115 m2 | BUDGET $19.25 M | STATUS Under Construction | ANTICIPATED COMPLETION December 2024
GREENHOUSE GAS INTENSITY (PROJECTED) 2.73 kgCO2e/m2/year