Patkau Architects

Artlab

Artlab
© Patkau Architects

ARTlab

Patkau Architects + LM Architectural Group

CODE CONSULTING
Gage Babcock & Associates

PHOTOGRAPHS
Patkau Architects, James Dowpatkau Architects, James Dow

ACOUSTICS
Daniel Lyzun & Associates

SUSTAINABILITY
Sustainable Solutions

ELECTRICAL
Mcw/age

BUILDER
Pcl Constructors Canada Inc.

MECHANICAL
Sms Engineering

AREA
6300 M²

LANDSCAPE
Hilderman Thomas Frank Cram

INTERIOR DESIGNER
Gage Babcock & Associates

STRUCTURAL
Crosier Kilgour & Partners

CODE
Gage Babcock & Associates Ltd

PROJECT TEAM
John Patkau, Patricia Patkau, And Greg Boothroyd Stephanie Coleridge, Michael Cunningham, Dylan Gilmore, Marc Holland, Dimitri Koubatis, Maureen Kwong, Thomas Schroeder, Luke Stern, Peter Suter, And Michael Thorpe

AUDIOVISUAL
Mc Squared System Design Group

SIGNAGE
Gallop/varley

COST
Hanscomb

LOCATION
Canada

CATEGORY
Student Hall

YEAR
2012

Text description provided by the architects.

This project began as a renovation to Tache Hall, a 1911 student residence, for Music and Art at the University of Manitoba.

Artlab
© Patkau Architects
Artlab
© Patkau Architects

When an opportunity arose for federal stimulus funding during the 2009 recession, the decision was made to develop a portion of the program separately, so it could be designed and constructed in an expedited manner to meet funding deadlines. This project, the ARTlab, became the first of a multi-phase creative arts facility.

The 6300 sqm ARTlab program consists of large spaces for the School of Art to complement small spaces within Tache Hall.

Artlab
© Patkau Architects
Artlab
© Patkau Architects

Included are a national-standard gallery, lecture hall, soundstage, administration, and a variety of new and traditional media studios.

The volume of the ARTlab interlocks with that of Tache Hall, reinforcing that the two buildings are an integrated arts facility and maximizing north daylit studio spaces on the site.

Artlab
© Patkau Architects

The extension of the north wing of the ARTlab around the corner of Tache Hall prominently places the ARTlab on the principal outdoor space on campus, Duckworth Quadrangle.

To facilitate critical urban connections to the south, the north wing of the ARTlab is raised one storey above grade.

Artlab
© Patkau Architects
Artlab
© Patkau Architects

The covered area below forms the entrance to the ARTlab and a generous covered outdoor space for school and gallery events.

Large V-shaped columns animate this space at an urban scale, negotiating the structural grid of the building with below-grade obstacles. The result is a lively courtyard caught between historic and contemporary buildings.

Artlab
© Patkau Architects
Artlab
© James Dow

To facilitate connections above-grade, a pair of bridges link the upper levels of the ARTlab to Tache Hall. Below-grade, the ARTlab ties into the campus tunnel network, a key pedestrian circulation system during the bitterly cold Winnipeg winter months.

Within the ARTlab, a narrow atrium links upper floors to below-grade spaces. Animated by south daylight, this atrium forms a spiraling vertical circulation space for the building.

On the ground and tunnel levels are the two principal public spaces of the building, The School of Art Gallery and the Lecture Hall.

Artlab
© Patkau Architects
Artlab
© James Dow

Terraced seating at the base of the atrium creates a multi-level lobby that connects these two facilities together, tying them to both at-grade and below-grade campus circulation. Studios and administration are on the upper floors to take advantage of natural light.

The exterior of the ARTlab juxtaposes modern construction with the historic masonry of Tache Hall.

The north elevation is fully glazed, so that the studios enjoy diffuse daylight and, at the same time, provide a visible expression of the life of the School of Art to the public spaces below. The east and south elevations are reticent, landscape walls.

Artlab
© James Dow
Artlab
© Patkau Architects

Aluminum grilles veil the envelope from sunlight and offer privacy from the nearby School of Business. The Virginia Creeper planted at the base of the grilles will eventually form a seasonably-variable campus-scale vertical xeriscape.


Artlab
Ground Level
Artlab
2nd Level
Artlab
3rd Level
Artlab
Tunnel Level Plan


Artlab
Section Detail
Artlab
Section


Artlab
Location
Artlab
Site Plan

Patkau Architects
T +1 604 6837633
Patkau Architects
1564 W 6th Ave, Vancouver, BC V6J 1R2, Canada