On July 9th, as part of West Coast Modern Week, pre-eminent architect John Patkau joins the West Coast Modern League, with the West Vancouver Art Museum and The Polygon Gallery, for a talk exploring the creation of architecture and design through unconventional material practice.

Founded by John and Patricia Patkau, Vancouver-based Patkau Architects is one of Canada’s most celebrated architecture firms. Their recent designs include the Audain Art Museum in Whistler, Polygon Gallery in North Vancouver, and Arbour House in Victoria.

In 2010, following 30 years of conventional material practice, Patkau Architects initiated a formal research program into using commonly available construction materials with modest but unconventional construction methods to produce buildable, expressive forms with inherent structural capacity and evocative identities.

Working directly with materials—bending and breaking them, feeling their texture, mass, and strength—provides a depth of understanding beyond simple visual observation. Material Operations begin with a relatively simple manipulation of a specific construction material and develop through reactions to the resulting transformation. At the most basic level, they follow the formula Material + Force = Form. Initial forms are found, not preconceived, in the way a specific material expresses stress through strain—flexing or failing in particular ways.

Now 15 years on, this investigation has produced numerous innovative projects, and the Princeton Architectural Press publication Patkau Architects: Material Operations. The journey of this investigation will be the focus of John’s presentation.

This event is presented as part of West Coast Modern Week 2025, organized by the West Vancouver Art Museum.

The West Coast Modern League gratefully acknowledges the partnership of the West Vancouver Art Museum and The Polygon Gallery.

Get Your Tickets:

TICKETS REQUIRED with a suggested $25 donation.
All funds raised will be allocated to this event and to funding the League's future public programs.

Event Schedule:

• Doors Open – 7:00pm
• Reception with Cash Bar & Snacks – 7:00 to 7:50pm
  
• Presentation – 7:50 to 8:50pm (Including audience Q&A)
• Event Ends – 9:00pm

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West Coast Modern Week:

West Coast Modern Week is a yearly celebration of West Coast Modernism, a distinct architectural style with deep roots in West Vancouver. Surrounded by forested mountains, an expansive ocean, and a lush rainforest, this natural setting presents unique challenges and opportunities that are reflected in the local architecture. Presented by the West Vancouver Art Museum, West Coast Modern Week’s events included talks, exhibitions, parties, and a unique Home Tour offering access to local, architecturally-significant homes.

Festival Details: https://westvancouverartmuseum.ca/west-coast-modern-week

West Coast Modern League:

[WCML/The League] The West Coast Modern League is a leading voice for modern architecture and design on Canada’s west coast. Established in 2013, the League is an independent, Vancouver-based, nonprofit society dedicated to celebrating, and advancing the understanding and appreciation of, architecture, urbanism, and design of the North American west coast, with a special focus on the southern coastal regions of British Columbia. In 2021, the League was the recipient of a District of West Vancouver Heritage Award. We are a volunteer-based organization, led by a Board of Directors composed of architects, curators, critics, and professionals, with a passion for west coast architecture and the allied arts.

WESTCOASTMODERN.ORG

The West Coast Modern League is based on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish peoples – the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.