Blending Heritage: Canada’s Integration of Revival Architecture and Modern Design
The architecture in Canada has evolved to reflect both its European heritage and modern global trends while adapting to the country’s environment. As Canada developed, architectural styles became a means to express its identity as an independent nation. This architectural development, especially in the 19th and early 20th centuries, was influenced by colonial styles from Great Britain and France. While French colonial was more prominent in Quebec, British styles influenced the rest of the country.
In this context, the adoption of 19th–century Gothic Revival styles and Classical Revival styles of the early 20th century became popular. Today, many of those buildings remain as prominent landmarks across the country and have become integral parts of the urban landscapes. This curated collection explores how Canadians are integrating traditional elements with modern materials like glass and steel. These efforts preserve the historical significance of the buildings while adapting them to meet the functional demands of modern life.
Read on to discover 4 projects that blend Canada’s heritage buildings in Gothic, Romanesque and Classical Revival Styles, with contemporary additions and expansions.
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Integrating the Past: Contemporary Projects that Preserve Preexisting Façades
The Royal Conservatory, TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning / KPMB Architects
The Royal Conservatory occupies a site in mid-town Toronto and features a Gothic Revival architectural style. Designed by the firm Langley, Langley & Burke in 1881, the building became the Royal Conservatory of Music in 1962. The project undertook the restoration of Ihnatowycz Hall, formerly McCaster Hall, and the construction of a new TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning led by KPMB architects. The goal was to create a hybrid of a teaching and rehearsal facility, as well as a concert venue with three major performance spaces. The new additions also include 43 new studios and a new 150-seat Conservatory Theatre. The annex is articulated with the heritage building through a glass atrium, creating a new double-height space that gives hierarchy to the main entrance.
Idea Exchange Old Post Office Library / RDHA
Located in the city of Cambridge in Ontario, this building is Canada’s first “bookless” library dedicated to Makerspaces. The project restored an 1885 masonry post office, originally built in the Second Empire, Romanesque and Gothic revival styles. The building was part of an 1881-1886 government program that erected public buildings in small communities and towns across Canada. Originally designed by Thomas Fuller, the post office had fallen into disrepair. That is why in 2018, it underwent a restoration that included a 9,000 ft2 (836 m2) transparent pavilion that wraps around the original building. Led by RDHA, the new addition is comprised of a glass box entrance that introduces a progression up to a feature stair adjacent to glass-walled views of the historic building. In this way, the design carries users into the contemporary pavilion that cantilevers over the river wall.
New Pavilion of Quebec and Canadian Art and Concert Hall / Provencher_Roy
Inserted in the middle of downtown Montreal, this project was designed as an expansion of the Museum of Fine Arts. The project led by Provencher Roy, includes the restoration, and conversion of the nave of the former Erskine and American church (1894) into a 444-seat concert hall. The church was designed by Alexander C. Hutchinson in 1894 and inspired by the Romanesque Revival style. The new hall opened in 2011, and increased the museum’s exhibition space by 20%, reaching a total of 18,953 ft2 (1760 m2) of gallery space. At the same time, the former church space is now known as the Bourgie Concert Hall, which provides the museum with 8,095 ft2 (752 m2) to host a full range of music performances along with museum-related public programs.
Bank of Canada Headquarters Renewal / Perkins+Will
The Bank of Canada stands in Ottawa’s Parliamentary District. In 2012 Perkins+Will was commissioned to revitalize the old bank which had already been intervened by Arthur Erikson in 1979. The Bank of Canada complex includes the Erickson-designed glass and copper addition that surrounds the original 1936 stripped classical stone building. The architects approached this double restoration by bringing back Erikson’s original vision for a Winter Garden atrium while transforming the atrium’s underutilized real estate into a secure, collaborative nucleus for the Bank. Leaving the original architecture largely untouched, they maintained the visual integrity of Erikson’s glass façade through the installation of a dynamic buffer zone. It is comprised of a second skin of glass 18 in (45 cm) inside the building envelope, which helps increase occupant comfort.
This article is part of an ArchDaily curated series that focuses on built projects from our database grouped under specific themes related to cities, typologies, materials, or programs. Every month, we will highlight a collection of structures that find a common thread between previously uncommon contexts, unpacking the depths of influence on our built environments. As always, at ArchDaily, we highly appreciate the input of our readers. If you think we should mention specific ideas, please submit your suggestions.
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