Arthur Erickson

Arthur Erickson was a Canadian architect and urban planner who was widely regarded as Canada's most influential architect. He studied engineering at the University of British Columbia and architecture at McGill University, where he graduated with honours in 1950. He served in the Canadian Army Intelligence Corps during World War II and traveled extensively in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. He taught at the University of Oregon and the University of British Columbia, where he designed some of his early houses. He joined the firm of Thompson Berwick and Pratt and Partners in 1957 and became a partner in 1963. He founded his own firm, Arthur Erickson Architects, in 1972. Erickson's designs were often inspired by the natural and cultural contexts of their locations, as well as by his admiration for the works of Frank Lloyd Wright and Le Corbusier. He used concrete, glass, wood, and steel to create organic forms that harmonized with the landscape and the urban environment. He was known for his innovative use of light, water, and vegetation, as well as his attention to detail and craftsmanship. He completed more than 500 projects in Canada and abroad, including residential, institutional, commercial, cultural, and civic buildings, as well as master plans for urban development. Some of his most notable works are the Simon Fraser University campus, the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia, the Robson Square complex, the Canadian Chancery in Washington, D.C., the Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto, the Napp Laboratories in Cambridge, England, and the San Diego Convention Center. ¹² Erickson received many awards and honours for his achievements, such as the Massey Medal, the Molson Prize, the AIA Gold Medal, the RAIC Gold Medal, the Order of Canada, and the Order of British Columbia. He was also a fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, an honorary fellow of the American Institute of Architects, and an honorary member of the Royal Institute of British Architects. He died of Alzheimer's disease in 2009. ¹²