Description:
Awarded through a national design competition in 2011, the building attempts to recall the history of Borden Park through a reintroduction of the playful qualities of its status as an amusement park in the early 20th century. The scheme makes overtly manifest the iconic geometry of classical parks and pavilions in its pedestrian design, comprised of axial and curving paths that merge into circuses at key points, This notion is further carried out by the circular form of the amenity pavilion itself, which also engages in a formal relationship with the park’s other geometric structures from past and present, such as the carousel, bandshell and ferris wheel. (…)
Primary functions of the amenity pavilion are confined to the core allowing a complete 360-degree promenade around the building perimeter to maximize year-round engagement with the park and landscape through a fully transparent exterior skin. This skin, when viewed from the exterior in daylight, is visually impermeable and highly reflective. In mirroring the immediate landscape in striking triangular facets, the building seems almost to dissolve into its idyllic surroundings, lending a fleeting, ephemeral quality to the experience of the pavilion while encouraging a sense of liveliness and interactivity through the device of the façade as fun-house mirror. [1]
References
[1] Fox, Thomas. “Borden Park Pavilion.” gh3*. gh3*, January 11, 2021. https://www.gh3.ca/work/borden-park-pavilion.
Additional information
Canadian Architect. “Governor General's Medal Winner: Borden Park Pavilion.” Canadian Architect, May 2, 2019. https://www.canadianarchitect.com/borden-park-pavilion/.
Duguay, Hugo, Benoit Avarello, and Alexandre Cameron. “gh3 (Lauréat).” , Canadian Competitions Catalogue / Catalogue des Concours Canadiens, January 26, 2016. https://ccc.umontreal.ca/fiche_concours.php?lang=en&cId=311.
“Borden Park Pavilion Edmonton.” Borden Park Pavilion | Prairie Design Awards. Accessed May 20, 2021. http://www.prairiedesignawards.com/2016/borden_park_pavilion.html.
“Borden Park Pavilion by gh3 in Edmonton Canada: Livegreenblog.” Floornature.com. Accessed May 25, 2021. https://www.floornature.com/blog/borden-park-pavilion-by-gh3-in-edmonton-canada-10028/.
Borden Park Pavilion. Vimeo, 2021. https://vimeo.com/363590746.
“Borden Park Pavilion.” JEN COL, February 26, 2021. https://jen-col.com/project/borden-park-pavilion/.
“Borden Park.” Alberta Canada. Accessed May 25, 2021. https://www.travelalberta.com/ca/listings/borden-park-11902/.
“Borden Park.” City of Edmonton. Accessed May 25, 2021. https://www.edmonton.ca/activities_parks_recreation/parks_rivervalley/borden-park.aspx.
“Edmonton Unveils Winning Park Pavilion Designs | CBC News.” CBCnews. CBC/Radio Canada, April 15, 2011. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/edmonton-unveils-winning-park-pavilion-designs-1.1063738.
“History of Borden Park – City of Edmonton Alberta Canada.” FHNAS.CA, May 29, 2017. http://fhnas.ca/history-borden-park-city-edmonton-alberta-canada/.
“Portfolio.” Alberta Glass -. Accessed May 25, 2021. http://albertaglass.com/projects/.
Stolte, Elise. “Borden Park Pavilion Wins Governor General's Award for Outstanding Architecture.” edmontonjournal. Edmonton Journal, May 8, 2018. https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/borden-park-pavilion-wins-governor-generals-award-for-outstanding-architecture/.
Valenzuela, Karen. “Borden Park Pavilion / gh3.” ArchDaily. ArchDaily, September 29, 2014. https://www.archdaily.com/551163/borden-park-pavilion-gh3.
