New Vancouver Art Gallery | Proposed - Page 21

SpongeG · #**401** Posted **Apr 29, 2010, 11:09 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by trofirhen

I thought that the decision to move to the site of the old bus terminal had already been made. How elegant! And such stunning architecture surrounding it ... the CBC atom bomb shelter, the Post Office Penitentiary.....
yep ..... right down in the centre of the Tourist District .......

actually its changed in the last few years - the CBC reno is great - they have a plaza with a giant screen and you can watch the news studio through the window or on the plaza as they often film it outside there, they have ticker news things on the onceugly blank wall, there is a nice coffee shop (JJ Bean) in the plaza, plus a bread garden and a CBC shop, there is also a garden and the retail on robson etc. stadium station is right across the street from teh new location where tourists get off to explore china town and area

its a good spot - people will seek it out as it is a destination place

Hed Kandi · #**402** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 1:47 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by LeftCoaster

Haha hed, your post was actually pretty clever and kinda funny, I'll give you points for originality on this one.

In my defence however I usually just find your architectural taste to lean towards tacky buildings that will look dated in a manner of years. I have stated that I appreciate great architecure, and that i find most of what Vancouver builds to be quite banal and homogenous. Where we differ is here:

- I dont qualify great architecure as simply a strange shaped building with shiny glass.

- I feel as though great architecture is both daring and original but appreciates the space in which it is built.

- I feel there are a number of local skilled architecture firms (some of whom even have projects in Dubai) who are capable of designing a great porject.

- I feel the more important aspect of architecure is how a building meets the street and interacts with its neighbourhood, wich vancouver's pletohora of glass clad condos actually manage to do quite well. Better than most cities in the world in fact.

- I dont think it is a big deal that vancouver has endless boring condos. most residential buildings are boring, just look at 99% of the residential buildings in NYC or Hong Kong. I dont think we need an internatonal design competition applied to every building built in Vancouver (as you once proposed).

The following is a rendering that I believe meets your above listed criteria. It is also one which I would consider worthy of housing the new art gallery.

trofirhen · #**403** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 3:00 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by SpongeG

actually its changed in the last few years - the CBC reno is great - they have a plaza with a giant screen and you can watch the news studio through the window or on the plaza as they often film it outside there, they have ticker news things on the onceugly blank wall, there is a nice coffee shop (JJ Bean) in the plaza, plus a bread garden and a CBC shop, there is also a garden and the retail on robson etc. stadium station is right across the street from teh new location where tourists get off to explore china town and area

its a good spot - people will seek it out as it is a destination place

That's good to hear. I'm not really in a position to judge, living overseas.
I still wish they'd put that monstrously ugly Post Office somewhere else.
No matter what treatment they give it, it will be ugly.
Imagine something in its place, just as big, only designed to be beautiful, geared for the arts.

dleung · #**404** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 3:38 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hed Kandi

The following is a rendering that I believe meets your above listed criteria. It is also one which I would consider worthy of housing the new art gallery.

I wouldn't want to waste an entire downtown city block on a gimmicky undulating box. Stuff like that only happens on the outskirts of Berlin or some aspiring Chinese city.

trofirhen · #**405** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 7:00 AM**

Along Georgia street, we have the present VAG building, a neo-classical building done in 18th century style with a very Roman influence.
Further along is the Public Library, a modern derivative of the Colosseum in Rome.
Would it not be appropriate therefore that if a large, new art gallery is built, that it follow classical lines of some sort?
This is eclectic, derivative architecture in a young, new-world city.
As such, it is not a "sin" to borrow from the Classical styles.
We have already done that.
I think what we need is something truly inspiring, and above all, ELEGANT.

trofirhen · #**406** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 7:07 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by dleung

I wouldn't want to waste an entire downtown city block on a gimmicky undulating box. Stuff like that only happens on the outskirts of Berlin or some aspiring Chinese city.

Ever visited the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, otherwise known as the "Beaubourg?" It isn't brand new - about 30 years old, give or take, but it has to be one of the ugliest modern buildings built for art --- even if it is for modern art. Outside escalators in glass tubes, colored pipes on the walls of the building - it just SCREAMS at everything around it.

But it's in Paris, so it gets the OK. Opinions on these things are so relative that it's next-to-nigh impossible to say what's "good" or "appropriate," etc.

CBeats · #**407** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 2:50 PM**

Yeah, I went there when I was in Paris. Unfortunately, it had the kind of modern art that I hate - that stereotypical outside-the-box stuff, like a slideshow of pictures of a trash-filled pond, or a looping video of a woman pulling rosary beads out of her mouth, complete with an extensive description about feminism and society or what have you...

The building itself was pretty cool though. Definitely not a stunner in any sense, but I liked all the escalators attached to the outside of the building.

WarrenC12 · #**408** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 3:25 PM**

I heard on the news this morning that the Museum of Vancouver is already expressing interest in moving into the old Courthouse (current VAG). Sounds like they are reading this forum.

trofirhen · #**409** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 4:03 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

I heard on the news this morning that the Museum of Vancouver is already expressing interest in moving into the old Courthouse (current VAG). Sounds like they are reading this forum.

We could do a whole lot worse.

delboy · #**410** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 4:11 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

I heard on the news this morning that the Museum of Vancouver is already expressing interest in moving into the old Courthouse (current VAG). Sounds like they are reading this forum.

very befitting. I was recently amazed at how few locals actually realized we had a museam here! Doesn't say much for their marketing campaign or location for that matter.

trofirhen · #**411** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 4:26 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by delboy

very befitting. I was recently amazed at how few locals actually realized we had a museam here! Doesn't say much for their marketing campaign or location for that matter.

I just googled their website, and they have a plethora of interesting stuff, from Indian art, to historic photography and literature, to a collection of vintage neon signs ... the list goes on. It is very eclectic, and respects all groups. I think it would make a great tenant for the current VAG building, if they are planning to move. Great range of interest ... something for everyone, it seems.

jsbertram · #**412** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 4:41 PM**

BCTV news report says that 3 groups (so far) are making noise about moving in after VAG moves out.
a) Museum of Vancouver relocation from Vanier Park
b) Supreme Court to get more courtrooms
c) UBC to expand their Robson Square facilities

Whattya bet that if MoV gets to move in, they also build storage space and/or exhibit space under the front lawn and the east/west space right up to the sidewalk limits?

djh · #**413** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 4:47 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsbertram

BCTV news report says that 3 groups (so far) are making noise about moving in after VAG moves out.
a) Museum of Vancouver relocation from Vanier Park
b) Supreme Court to get more courtrooms
c) UBC to expand their Robson Square facilities

Whattya bet that if MoV gets to move in, they also build storage space and/or exhibit space under the front lawn and the east/west space right up to the sidewalk limits?

Which of those 3 groups would you guess has the best "arguers" (read: lawyers) for their case...?

trofirhen · #**414** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 4:48 PM**

This link provides a look at a modern building in stockholm which might be comparable in size to a new VAG. Most noticeable is the combination of design texture, yet clean lines. It looks rather elegant, and although some will sneer at it, it could be a drop of inspiration for a new VAG

http://www.istockphoto.com/file_thumbvie...635-modern-architecture-in-stockholm.jpg

It's not a big photo, but it gives an idea of blending modernity with taste, IMHO

trofirhen · #**415** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 4:52 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by djh

Which of those 3 groups would you guess has the best "arguers" (read: lawyers) for their case...?

"B" .... for Bullwinkle J. Moose

(a courthouse again: how dull) ...

delboy · #**416** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 5:16 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsbertram

BCTV news report says that 3 groups (so far) are making noise about moving in after VAG moves out.
a) Museum of Vancouver relocation from Vanier Park
b) Supreme Court to get more courtrooms
c) UBC to expand their Robson Square facilities

Whattya bet that if MoV gets to move in, they also build storage space and/or exhibit space under the front lawn and the east/west space right up to the sidewalk limits?

anything other than a cultural institution would be tragic. Who owns the site?

thenorthofvan · #**417** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 5:20 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by dleung

I wouldn't want to waste an entire downtown city block on a gimmicky undulating box. Stuff like that only happens on the outskirts of Berlin or some aspiring Chinese city.

could you please show us some examples of something that you would find better suited ?

trofirhen · #**418** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 5:24 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by thenorthofvan

could you please show us some examples of something that you would find better suited ?

http://www.istockphoto.com/file_thum...-stockholm.jpg

Try this, from my posting above. It only shows a part of a building in Stockholm, but you can get the general idea. It's crisp and clean, if you know what I mean. But, as with everything, some will take to it, some won't.
YIKES! This link doesn't work. Go to Post 414 if you're interested and click on the link.

trofirhen · #**419** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 5:46 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by delboy

anything other than a cultural institution would be tragic. Who owns the site?

Last I heard it was BCBC > British Columbia Buildings Corporation

Smooth · #**420** Posted **Apr 30, 2010, 6:17 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsbertram

BCTV news report says that 3 groups (so far) are making noise about moving in after VAG moves out.
a) Museum of Vancouver relocation from Vanier Park
b) Supreme Court to get more courtrooms
c) UBC to expand their Robson Square facilities

My vote would be for the Museum of Vancouver. Since the city owns the site that the art gallery wants to move to then hopefully that means they'd get right of first refusal to the courthouse building.