East Asiatic House

Mid-century modern buildings

When called upon to design a new downtown office building in the early 1960s, rather than go full-on high-rise, architect Gerald Hamilton designed a more intimate 8-story complex; a cluster of three towers (1 low and 2 mid-rise) artfully finished in white marble resting on green arched columns above a raised courtyard. He adorned nice minimalist embellishments on its facade too, very effective in creating depth, texture and shadow.

Combining the design styles of Brutalism and New Formalism – a break away movement which combined modernist techniques with classical elements such as arches, patterns and refined adornments – Hamilton would later incorporate these principals into his plans for the iconic H.R. MacMillan Planetarium.

The East Asiatic House opened in 1963 is one of our favorite buildings in Vancouver.

Visited 5134 times, 1 Visits today

Tagged In Architecture,BC,Building,East Asiatic House,gerald hamilton,MCM,Mid Century Modern,Modernism,modtraveler,modtraveler.net,new formalism,Retro,Vancouver and Vintage

Related Listings

Bentall Centre

505 Burrard Street, Vancouver, BC, Canada

View More Details

Mid-century modern buildings & art Located along Vancouver’s downtown Burrard Street corridor, the Bentall Centre holds a bank pavilion and four towers (housing established businesses and law offices) which were… Read more…