Remai Art Gallery of Saskatchewan design receives 2011 Canadian Architect Award of Excellence

Remai Art Gallery of Saskatchewan design receives 2011 Canadian Architect Award of Excellence

TORONTO, Dec. 16, 2011 /CNW/ – With the announcement of a 2011 Canadian Architect Award of Excellence, the proposed new Remai Art Gallery of Saskatchewan (REMAI) is off to an auspicious start. This striking design, overlooking the South Saskatchewan River, is the result of collaboration between Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects (KPMB) as design architects and Smith Carter Architects + Engineers as architects of record.  Scheduled  to open in 2015, the Remai will be three times the size of the current 47-year-old Gallery it replaces.

“The Remai Art Gallery of Saskatchewan will be a vibrant cultural centre for an exciting, dynamic city,” said Vincent Varga, Executive Director and CEO of the Mendel Art Gallery. “This award for the stunning design of the facility only reinforces our belief in the project, as we transition from the Mendel Art Gallery, with its own proud history in the community, to the expansive and exciting new landmark at Saskatoon’s River Landing.”

The Canadian Architect Awards of Excellence, one of two major national design award programs, has recognized significant projects – from small-scale installations to complex institutional buildings – on an annual basis since 1968.  The jury for the 2011 Canadian Architect Awards comprised Walter Frand Architecture Inc., in Vancouver, Diarmuid Nash, Partner in Moriyama & Teshima Architects in Toronto, and Peter Sampson, Principal of Peter Sampson Architecture Studio in Winnipeg. The Remai was 1 of 8 Awards of Excellence selected from 163 submissions.

In selecting the design of the Remai, juror Peter Sampson commented how the “rational composition of gallery and theatre volumes on the banks of Saskatoon’s river valley will be a compelling addition to the city’s south downtown precinct.”