Description
World exhibitions have always been a stage for industrial progress and innovative technologies or products. In 1986, 50 nations and international corporations showed recent developments from the fields of traffic and communication. In Vancouver, the pavilions themselves mirrored the technological progress of the participating countries as well. Most of them were planned as temporary structures that were to be dismantled after the show; only four exposition buildings remain, among them the Canada Place hall, which is now used as a convention and exhibition center.
The building was to express a symbolical character for Vancouver and have a structure using modern building techniques. Similar to the Sydney Opera House by Jørn Utzon, the ship-like form seems to float on the water. Instead of concrete, Zeidler used a thin membrane to enclose the space. Five reinforced fibreglass teflon roofs span 50 m and are braced by cables in both directions to stabilize the structure. The pylons from which the textile structure is suspended are 27 m high. The tent shape is reminiscent of sails and is intended to symbolize the East Pacific Fleet, which landed at this point a hundred years ago. The architect exclusively used materials from shipbuilding to underline the ship-like character of the building.
A further intention of the architect was to define the layout as a “symbiosis of different uses”, which, according to Zeidler, is the only way urbanity can evolve. On top of the lower parking levels the main functional areas like exhibition halls, meeting rooms, and attached secondary spaces are situated. Promenades on both sides of the pier lead to an amphitheatre, a cinema, the ferry terminal, and a hotel and office building, among other facilities. Since the views from the port are protected, the hotel tower was placed in a blind spot of the site at the pier head. In this way, visitors can observe the landing ships and as a counterweight to the visual challenges of the exhibition area, they enjoy sweeping views of snow-topped mountains, Stanley Park, and the skyline of the city.
Drawings
Exhibition floor
Hotel floor
Floor plan diagram
Northeast elevation
Northwest elevation
Photos
Ship-like multifunctional complex against the Vancouver skyline
50 m span of the sail-like load-bearing structure consisting of membranes and cables
Originally published in: Jürgen Adam, Katharina Hausmann, Frank Jüttner, Industrial Buildings: A Design Manual, Birkhäuser, 2004.