Канадалық сәулетші Брюс Кувабараның өмірі мен шығармашылығы

Canadian architect

Bruce Bunji Kuwabara, (OC, B. Arch, OAA, FRAIC, AIA, RIBA) is a Canadian architect and a founding partner of the firm KPMB Architects (formed in 1987). He is an invested Officer of the Order of Canada and recipient of the RAIC Gold Medal. He is Board Chair of the Canadian Centre for Architecture in Montreal.

Born in Hamilton, Ontario in 1949, Bruce Kuwabara studied architecture at the University of Toronto and graduated in 1972. Upon graduation, Kuwabara joined the teaching studio of George Baird, an architect and architectural theorist. Baird was influential to Kuwabara's interest in ideas of city building and the narrative concept of architecture. It was in Baird's studio that Kuwabara also encountered many of the most influential architects of the time, including James Stirling, Arata Isozaki, and Leon Krier. Following the apprenticeship with Baird, Kuwabara joined Barton Myers Associates where he was an associate for 12 years. Barton Myers, who studied under the leading American architect, Louis Kahn (1901 1974), inspired Kuwabara, and his future partners who were also associates of BMA – Thomas Payne, Marianne McKenna and Shirley Blumberg to think about the city, and how to integrate strategies of urban infill and consolidation.

In 2011, Kuwabara was made an Officer of the Order of Canada "for his contributions, as an architect, to our built landscape and for his commitment to professional excellence". He is the recipient of the RAIC 2006 Gold Medal. The medal recognizes Kuwabara's contribution to the profession of architecture and is Canada's highest honour bestowed by the profession on an individual. In his acceptance speech, Kuwabara offered a personal reflection contrasting the memories of growing up in the post World War II climate as a Japanese Canadian with the later inspirations of his mentors and seminal events that determined his vocation as an architect. His reflections of the collaborative nature of architecture and an overview of his practice is featured in a special supplement published by Canadian Architect in the June 2006 issue, with essays by George Baird and Larry Richards who wrote: "From his collaborative contributions on large urban projects with Barton Myers in the 1970s to his conceptions for complex city fabric insertions during the past decade , Kuwabara has demonstrated remarkable leadership as an accomplished architect urbanist with a very particular sense of the design and health of cities." Bruce was elected into the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts in 2005.

Long before the environment was considered a priority issue in Canada, Kuwabara was studying and prioritizing strategies for integrating sustainability with architectural design. His involvement as the design principal for the Canadian Embassy in Berlin (joint venture of KPMB with Gagnon Letellier Cyr Architectes, and Smith Carter Architects + Engineers) presented the opportunity to study and integrate international strategies for reducing energy consumption and developing a healthy, sustainable work environment. These lessons would greatly influence future projects in Canada, particularly Manitoba Hydro Place in downtown Winnipeg. Manitoba Hydro Place is one of the most energy efficient large scale office towers in the world and establish a model for extreme climate design in Canada and internationally. This project is the product of a collaboration with Transsolar and Smith Carter Architects + Engineers. The project was realized through a formal C 2000 Integrated Design Process (IDP) to achieve 60% reduction in energy consumption with a signature design and catalyze the urban revitalization of the downtown. The building exceeded original goals for LEED Gold and was certified LEED Platinum in 2012.

Kuwabara and KPMB have supported the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design, at the University of Toronto as well as contributed to its curriculum. Specifically, Kuwabara helped to establish the Frank Gehry Chair for International Visitors in Architectural Design, as well as to the Faculty's ongoing building renovations. As co chair of the University's Design the Future campaign, Kuwabara played a key role in spearheading funding for the Gehry Chair. In recognition of his contribution, he was presented with the Arbor Award for "outstanding personal service to the University of Toronto and its divisions."

George Baird, Thomas Fisher, Mark Kingwell and Mirko Zardini. Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects. Basel, Switzerland: Birkhäuser, 2013. Lambert, Phyllis, Detlef Mertins, Bruce Mau and Rodolphe el Khoury. The Architecture of Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects. Basel, Berlin, Boston: Birkhäuser Publishers for Architecture, 2004. Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg. A monograph in the Contemporary World Architects series. USA: Rockport Publishers Inc., 1998. [foreword by George Baird; introduction by Detlef Mertins]