2013 Wood Design Awards

Wood WORKS! BC has announced the winners of its 2013 Wood Design Awards, recognizing leadership and innovation in wood use. This year saw 98 nominations in 12 categories, including national and international projects undertaken by British Columbia architects. Top honours include:

• Architect Award – Bo Helliwell Architect AIBC and Kimberley Smith Architect AIBC, of Helliwell + Smith Blue Sky Architecture in West Vancouver, praised for their organic approach to west coast modern design that celebrates the beauty and versatility of wood construction architecture.
• Wood Innovation Award – Peter Busby C.M. AIA FRAIC Architect AIBC AAA MOAA BCID LEED AP, and Jim Huffman Architect AIBC of Perkins + Will, for the VanDusen Botanical Garden Visitor Centre as a leading example of creative and innovative approaches in the use of wood in building design, product design and/or processes.
• Green Building Award – Peter Busby C.M. AIA FRAIC Architect AIBC AAA MOAA BCID LEED AP of Perkins + Will for the Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability at the University of British Columbia, which demonstrates a significant contribution to improving the overall environmental performance of any building.
• Residential Wood Design: – Kimberley Smith Architect AIBC of Helliwell + Smith Blue Sky Architecture, for Solar Crest on Sidney Island.
• Multi-Unit Residential Wood Design – to Oliver Lang Architect AIBC, LWPAC Lang Wilson Practice in Architecture Culture, for  Monad.
• Commercial Wood Design – McFarland Marceau Architects Ltd. for Vancouver’s Bioenergy Research and Demonstration Facility.
• Interior Beauty Design – Andreas Kaminski Architect AIBC, of aka architecture + design inc, recognizing the  Queen of Peace Monastery in Squamish Valley.
• Institutional Wood Design – Small – Graham D. Fligg Architect AIBC of Merrick Architecture – Borowski Sakumoto Fligg Ltd., for the  Klahoose First Nation New Relationship Centre on Cortes Island.
• Institutional Wood Design – Large – Jana Foit Architect AIBC at Perkins + Will, for her work on the University of British Columbia’s Earth Sciences Building.
• Western Red Cedar Award – Pam Chilton RD.AIBC of Vancouver’s Zimba Design for The Urban Longhouse in North Vancouver, recognizing the beauty of Western Red Cedar for interior or exterior applications on any type of project.

This year’s winners were chosen by a judging panel that included Tom Guenther P.Eng, Chair of the Civil Engineering Department – Okanagan College; Retired Architect Henry Hawthorn; Douglas MacLeod Ph.D., MRAIC, Chair of the RAIC Centre for Architecture – Athabasca University; Thomas Tannert Ph.D., Associate Chair – Wood Building Design and Construction, University of British Columbia; and Dwight Yochim RPF, Executive Director – British Columbia Truck Loggers Association. For additional information on this year’s awards, visit the Wood WORKS! BC site at http://www.wood-works.ca/.