Masonry Magazine February 1976 Page. 8
submitted; there was a preponderance of commercial entries. Traditionally commercial buildings find their "tour de force" in investment return and are hurridly designed. The standard of the commercial buildings received reflected these constraints. It is hoped that if the architect finds more activity in this area the standard will improve. One of the awards indicates the Jury's concern for better commercial design.
The submissions suggested that architects in 1975 are not being asked to perform the traditional role of master builder. Few entries demonstrated the same concern for interior space planning as for the exterior design. This "skin-deep" approach disappointed the Jury when they visited and saw the interiors of many of the potential award winners. When the interior was controlled by the architect, the result met with general success.
In some cases buildings were incomplete upon inspection, and therefore could not be judged fairly.
Award of Excellence
OTONABEE COLLEGE, TRENT UNIVERSITY
Peterborough, Ontario
Architects: Fairfield & DuBois
(now DuBois, Strong, Bindhardt)
Consulting Structural Engineers: M. S. Yolles &
Partners Ltd.
Masonry Contractors: E. Graziano & Brothers Ltd.
General Contractors: Konvey Construction Co. Ltd.
Jury Comment: Otonabee College is a successfully sited companion with Champlain College. Together they form a meaningful ensemble along the Otonabee River. The two colleges form an enclosure centered on the river that makes Trent University seem unified and complete.
Otonabee College has been positioned along existing tree lines and contours in such a way it seems to have existed for many years in a completely natural setting.
The imaginative use of grey concrete block and red-brown ribbed metal roofing, combined with a barn-like form, gives this complex a quality which seems completely right in the rural setting. This impresses as being a contemporary continuum of Canadian vernacular architecture.
The choice of exterior materials accomplishes a sensitive unity of feeling with the exposed concrete of Champlain College. The innovative use of concrete and concrete block, combined with appropriate detailing and excellent workmanship, has created a richness often attributed to more expensive materials. The Jury was impressed by the reported low cost.
As one ascends the hill within the building complex, a series of changing spacial experiences is exciting and delightful. The exposed concrete, concrete block and plaster could have produced a visually Spartan environment; but by the use of bold, non-primary colours, a rich, warm and intriguing interior (with a touch of Corbusier) has resulted. While the Jury felt that the "walkway nodes" made to provide for student house identity were unsuccessful and perhaps unnecessary, it was impressed by the thought given to environmental design control as expressed by reduced glass area, window overhang and sloped roofs.
The Jury is of the opinion that this Canadian building will become a substantial marker in the history of world architecture.
Awards of Merit
Architects: Dunlop, Farrow, Aitken
Consulting Structural Engineers:
Foster Engineering Ltd.
General & Masonry Contractors:
Ivey-Dreger Construction Ltd.
Jury Comment: With the general deterioration of the quality of design of religious buildings in the latter half of the twentieth century, this little chapel is a refreshing departure from the norm.
The concept of simple, but daring, integration of nature and religious ceremony is most successful.
The innovative use of brick serpentine walls provides strength and a sense of stability to an otherwise transparent building, without detracting from the garden atmosphere.
The scale is small and intimate; the feeling, serene and religious.
The environmental problem produced by the plastic roof may be solved by the installation of shades; the close link to the contrasting existing buildings was felt to be unfortunate.
SISTERS OF THE CHURCH CHAPEL
Oakville, Ontario
8
masonry
February, 1976