FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ART GALLERY OF SASKATCHEWAN ARCHITECTS APPROVED BY CITY COUNCIL (PDF Version)
June 30, 2010 Saskatoon
At its June 28 meeting, Saskatoon City Council approved the consultant
team of Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg (KPMB) Architects in
association with Smith Carter Architects and Engineers Incorporated,
for the design of the Art Gallery of Saskatchewan. The $51-million
building will adjoin the Remai Arts Centre at River Landing.
A
two-stage, quality-based selection process started with 15 firms
submitting Expressions of Interest. Five were shortlisted, and one
withdrew for internal reasons. The KPMB/Smith Carter team, which has
extensive gallery and museum experience, was the unanimous choice of
the selection committee.
KPMB and Smith Carter have collaborated
successfully for 15 years, notably on the new Canadian Embassy in
Berlin, Germany, and Manitoba Hydro Place in Winnipeg, winner of the
2010 National Urban Design Award, Royal Architectural Institute of
Canada. “Our design for the Art Gallery of Saskatchewan will celebrate
the vibrant, evolving community of Saskatoon with a new platform for
the experience of art,” said Bruce Kuwabara, of Toronto-based KPMB.
“The new gallery must build on the outstanding legacy of the Mendel and
its contribution to cultural and civic debate. Architecture is an act
of placemaking, and our design will forge connections to the City and
to the river, and create strong synergy with the Remai Arts Centre. The
new gallery will be designed to claim a powerful place in the
collective imagination of Saskatoon, Canada and the world.”
Grant
Van Iderstine, of Winnipeg-based Smith Carter, said the new Art Gallery
of Saskatchewan “represents a symbol of optimism in the bigger
landscape of Canada's future growth and prosperity. We will ensure that
the design and engineering of this highprofile opportunity realizes a
stellar building that contributes to the image of Saskatoon as the
Gateway to the New North.”
Contact
Heather Smith
Smith Carter Architects and Engineers Incorporated
1600 Buffalo Place Winnipeg, MB R3T 6B8 Canada
T +1.204.477.1260
TF +1.877.477.1260
www.smithcarter.com