Prairie Wood Design Awards 2018: Cat’s Picks

The countdown is on! The winners of the 2018 Prairie Wood Design Awards will be announced on March 13th. Earlier this week Emma revealed her thoughts on the best in class for the five categories. Keep on reading to find out who I picked as my favourite submission in each of these categories.

Category: Recreational

Building: Elevation Place

Location: Canmore, Alberta

Designer: Gibbs Gage Architects

Photography: Gibbs Gage Architects

Though Emma, Ann, and I did not discuss our picks in advance, coincidentally I have selected the same pick as Emma in the Recreational category. What I find most stunning about Elevation Place is how it fits into the surrounding community. The angles of the exterior in combination with the use of wood and stone perfectly mirrors the natural surroundings of Canmore. The parallels to the natural world continue inside of the building where the size of wooden structures and open spaces can leave one in awe.

Category: Commercial

Building: The Mosaic Centre for Conscious Community and Commerce

Location: Edmonton, Alberta

Designer: Manasc Isaac

Photography: Josh Kjenner, Cooper and O’Hara, Vedran Skopac, Ross Auser, Garth Crump

Located in Edmonton, AB, the Mosaic Centre for Conscious Community and Commerce certainly lives up to its name. From the exterior you can see that it is a mosaic of angles, various sized windows, and beautiful wood. On the inside, the space looks bright, open, and inviting, with many uniquely styled seating areas, high ceilings, and greenery. In particular, I like the use of wood, glass, and steel on the staircases that look more like an inviting place to sit and chat, rather than the strictly utilitarian purposes of a traditional staircase. All of the windows and plants generate a natural vibe that I can imagine would make the building a welcoming and enjoyable place of work.

Category: Residential

Building: Rocky Mountains Foothills Residence

Location: Priddis, Alberta

Designer: DeJong Design Associates

Photography: Eymeric Widling Photography

The Rocky Mountains Foothills Residence is an amazing example of redesign and refurbishment. With the wishes of the client in mind, the goal of this project was to maintain some of the existing elements of the home. Sustainability is a strong theme in this residence given that it was possible to upgrade an existing structure and use wood, a sustainable building material to execute this project. The result is a beautiful home of wood, stone, steel, and expansive windows that rests naturally on the vast foothills landscape that surrounds it.

Category: Interior Showcase

Building: Trolley 5

Location: Calgary, Alberta

Designer: Modern Office of Design + Architecture (MoDA)

Photography: Robert Lemermeyer Photography

Full disclosure: I was definitely partial to the Trolley 5 submission because I had previously been there for a beer or two and was completely fascinated by the interior. The main level hosts interesting lighting, lots of rich coloured wood, and large windows. A trip into the basement reveals textured wooden blocks on the walls that leave you feeling like you have descended into an earthy lair. Throughout the entire building you will find a track system (the “growler-coaster”) that moves growlers of beer throughout the brewery and restaurant, adding another unique element to the dynamic setting.

Category: Institutional

Building: Fort McMurray Heritage Shipyard Train Company

Location: Fort McMurray

Designer: Macdonald & Lawrence Timber Framing / Heritageworks Ltd.

Photography: Macdonald & Lawrence Timber Framing

Thanks to the efforts of the Fort McMurray Historical Society (FMHS), the Northern Alberta Railways (NAR) Comboose 303 and Caboose 13002 are now protected by an artfully designed canopy. In an effort to preserve these train cars that are from the early 1900s the FMHS worked with a design team to construct a canopy of Douglas Fir. The contrast of the rich wooden beams with the deep black of the steel hardware creates a beautiful cover for the train cars. What is most interesting is the uniqueness of this submission. While most submissions are various kinds of buildings, I like how this structure houses historical transportation units using simple but stunning wood elements to do so.

Well, there you have it! Those are my selections across five categories for the 2018 Prairie Wood Design Awards. I look forward to Ann’s picks and also the announcement of the winners as selected by the panel of judges. For more information on the Prairie Wood Design Awards, please visit wood-works.ca/alberta or contact Barbara Murray at bmurray@wood-works.ca.