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Vancouver College
By : Acton Ostry Architects Inc.
GRANDS PRIX DU DESIGN – 16th edition
Discipline : Architecture
Categories : Public Building / School & Preschool Education Building : Silver Certification
Established in 1922, Vancouver College is an independent Catholic school learning community with a mission to educate boys and young men from diverse backgrounds in the tradition of Blessed Edmund Rice, with a focus on service to church and community. The history of the venerable institution began with the purchase of land in Shaughnessy Heights and the construction of Lannon Hall in 1925, followed by McCormack Hall in 1927. Expansion continued over the years with Mackin Hall in 1957, Nichol Hall in 1964, and the Brothers Residence in 1979.
The legacy of the college continued with an extensive visioning process that culminated in a long-term strategic master plan. A key objective was to strengthen the symbolic sense of place of Vancouver College through the creation of a central cloistered courtyard.
Phase One, Manrell Hall, is located to the west on the site of the former Brothers Residence. As is the tradition, the three-story, 4,350 square meter middle school is clad in red brick to reinforce a sense of continuity on the historic college campus. Oriented eastward on the central courtyard, the ground floor features a skylit entry lobby, founders atrium, learning commons, and dining hall. Upper floors house classrooms arranged in learning neighborhoods and the uppermost level includes an expansive west-facing deck for outdoor learning and gathering. A black steel frame contains large areas of glass that dramatically punctuate the north and south elevations. Long protruding planes of glass and brick mediate the scale of the school with the residential neighbors to the west.
Phase Two, Lannon Hall, marks the northern edge of the central courtyard. The two-story, 3,360 square meter elementary school features retention of the 1924 red brick Collegiate Gothic facade, an important symbolic anchor to the early history and foundational formation of Vancouver College. The ground floor includes a skylit entry lobby and feature stair, with views into a gymnasium through expanses of glass below and a playful arrangement of circular punched-windows above. An administration area and kindergarten wing complete the lower level. The upper floor features a central learning commons with an arrangement of classrooms and commons at each end.
A significant symbolic component of Lannon Hall is an in-school residence for the Christian Brothers that is configured to be convertible to academic space in the future. Connected to Lannon Hall and positioned near Manrell Hall, Phase Three, Blessed Edmund Rice Chapel, is clad in brilliant white masonry and marked with a striking white cruciform. The chapel features the original 1927 McCormack Hall entry archway, an important connection to the school’s past. The interior is lined with wood and raked plaster, awash with ethereal hues of turquoise, violet, and golden light. Lannon Hall, Manrell Hall, Blessed Edmund Rice Chapel, and the remainder of the campus buildings are now linked as a single entity around a central cloistered courtyard, forming a new heart and symbolic center that continues the legacy of Vancouver College into the next century.
Collaboration
