It was an absolute pleasure to join efforts with ACDF Architecture to produce renders for their latest high-rise residential development - Barclay Tower in Vancouver's renowned West End.From afar, the tower interacts with the public realm via games of light and shadow along the curvilinear balcony facades.
The tower is designed to have a fifth facade – a quality that engages the pedestrians on ground level. The pedestrian experience of the naturally planted zone reflects the naturally curved balconies above. As one walks along the public streetscape or the edge of the planted zone and looks up toward the tower, they gain a view of the playful alternating balconies and their embracing curved soffits.
The procession to the social housing entrance is inspired by a trail in a park, as the path is carved through the vegetal belt, contributing to the “tower in the park” typology.
The dense forest area includes large trees planted in four feet of soil. This large accessible public space is treated as a clearing in forest, located beneath the canopy of mature trees in the ‘dense forest’. This zone can be inhabited with an artistic intervention that could serve the public, such as a place to sit or to play. The serene quality of this space will foster a serene livability that will be truly unique in a dense urban downtown.
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