Photo by Michael Elkan
York House Senior School, Vancouver Acton Ostry Architects, Vancouver
There’s nothing “girly” about the new, 36,000-square-foot senior students’ addition to York House Senior School, an independent K-through-12 girls’ school in Vancouver’s Shaughnessy neighborhood. The no-nonsense blond wood and brutalist concrete materials palette, harking back to Arthur Erickson, would not be out of place in a boys’ school or military academy. If Acton Ostry Architects meant to send a message about disappearing gender roles, this jibes with the donor names screen-printed onto the glass guards delineating circulation routes through the atrium. The display of names exhorts students to live up to the school’s post-grad tradition of participation in the larger community. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The sky-lit atrium acts as a crossroads, linking to the existing north and south wings though a generous, day-lit concourse that sets the stage for interactions throughout the school day. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------LEED Gold sustainable design attributes include passive solar control and daylighting, resource-efficient building materials, and enhanced indoor air quality and occupant comfort – thanks to the atrium’s stack effect. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------•
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9/10 2015 CANADIAN INTERIORS
15-09-17 12:44 PM