Arthur Erickson – Launch of Foundation for Excellence in Architecture and Appreciation by McGill School of Architecture
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“Dear Friends and Colleagues of Arthur,
The time and location of Arthur’s memorial service and reception on Sunday, June 14, 2009, have changed to 2:30 pm at Simon Fraser University. We very much hope you will be able to attend. Please forward this information to others who cared about Arthur, since he influenced such a wide network of people that we want to do our best to be sure that no one is left out.
Should you wish more details, including information about free parking and directions to Simon Fraser University, please go to Arthur’s web site, www.arthurerickson.com.
If you have any anecdotes or thoughts about Arthur that you wish to share with others please email them to Emily (Erickson) McCullum (emily@digitallyhip.com) by Monday, June 8th. Your words may be included at the end of the Order of Service or posted on the web site in memory of Arthur.
In lieu of flowers please donate to the Arthur Erickson Foundation for Excellence in Architecture online at https://vancouverfoundation.ca/aerickson/donateonline.asp or by cheque as described in the attached pdf, which also explains the type of fund
We see this event as a chance to celebrate and reminisce about Arthur’s remarkable life and contribution to our community, our nation and, indeed, the world.
We sincerely thank the President and staff of Simon Fraser University for their very generous support and encouragement.
Our best regards to you all,
Don Erickson, Christopher Erickson, Geoffrey Erickson and Emily (Erickson) McCullum”
For more information on the Arthur Erickson Foundation for Excellence in Architecture…
Appreciation of Arthur Erickson, by David Covo and Barry Johns of the McGill School of Architecture:
“Arthur Erickson died on May 20, 2009, a few weeks before his 85th birthday. He was Canada’s greatest architect, our unofficial Architect Laureate.
For those who knew him, the modest house and garden where he lived so comfortably in his native Vancouver will always stand as the symbol of his legacy: five decades of extraordinary buildings that have transformed cities and landscapes across Canada and around the world.
Professional recognition of his work included the UIA’s Auguste Perret Award, Gold Medals from the AIA, Canada and France, and countless design awards. He was a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada and an honorary fellow of the professional colleges in Scotland, Spain, Mexico and the USA. He was an Academician of the Royal Canadian Academy of the Arts, a Companion of the Order of Canada, and he held seven honorary doctorates, including one in 1975 from McGill University, where he completed his architectural studies in 1950.
In the beginning, he wanted to be a painter; he recalled with warmth the soirées that he attended as a teenager at the Vancouver home of another legend, Canadian painter Lawren Harris. But one day, in the summer of 1946, he came across an article in Fortune magazine with the first colour photographs of Frank Lloyd Wright’s house and studio at Taliesin West, and he said, “If an architect can do this, I‘m going to go into architecture”. How many since then have been similarly inspired by one of his buildings?”
(Source: David Krawitz, Administrative Officer, McGill School of Architecture)