West Coast Modern League

West Coast Modern League Focus on the BC south coast. The League’s focus emanates from the West Coast Modernist period of the Greater Vancouver region, beginning with the B.C.

[WCML/The League] The West Coast Modern League is an independent, nonprofit society dedicated to celebrating, and advancing understanding and appreciation of, architecture/allied arts of the NOMA west coast. Through celebration and the promotion of critical discussion, the West Coast Modern League aims to recognize the distinctive architecture and design of the west coast, to champion the propagat

ion of the unique design principles of its place, and to explore linkages to locales further afield. Binning House in 1941, with a broadened exploration of the contemporary endeavours of a diverse design community in architecture and the allied arts. The West Coast Modern League works to: Advance awareness and appreciation of architecture, design, and the built environment; Celebrate and recognize the enduring regional legacy of architects, artists, and designers on our built environment, shared culture, and collective memory, and to inspire future generations to explore and carry forward the distinctive design tenets of this place; Foster camaraderie and discourse among a diverse design community by providing a platform to celebrate shared history, culture, influences and to stimulate the cross-pollination of ideas

The WCML carries on its activities through a broad range of public programming – salons, lectures, debates, and celebrations – digital media, and the support of other projects that encourage a stronger architectural culture. In addition, we partner with other professional organizations, like-minded societies, disciplines, and homeowners, among others. Follow us and subscribe to our mailing list:

Web: westcoastmodern.org
Email: [email protected]



I know what you're thinking and you'd be wrong. Sorry. This house is not a Bob Lewis post-and-beam, rather, it is a Kenn...
06/17/2026

I know what you're thinking and you'd be wrong. Sorry. This house is not a Bob Lewis post-and-beam, rather, it is a Kenneth Wall post-and-beam. When you see something that is beautiful and works well, you borrow it for yourself. This is common in design and construction and even Bob Lewis is known to have done this too.

Wall House, completed in 1958, was built by Kenneth Wall for his family. Less than a decade later it was listed on the market as an "executive home with privacy and a view. Double plumbing, family room, patio and sundeck and 2 fireplaces."

It is a beautiful example of our mid-century vernacular with cedar siding, douglas fir post-and-beam, ribbon windows, open plan living, a lushly planted landscape and, as you can see, very lovingly cared for.

The flattened image does not properly convey the immensity of this beautiful beast. Suspended within a glass lantern, th...
06/17/2026

The flattened image does not properly convey the immensity of this beautiful beast. Suspended within a glass lantern, the skeleton of a Blue Whale serves as the main event in the principal exhibition space of the Beaty Biodiversity Museum. Designed by Patkau Architects, the lantern sits along Main Mall, on the western flank of a larger facility housing research laboratories, offices, meeting spaces, and an extensive natural history collection organized around a central courtyard.
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Beaty Biodiversity Museum (2010)
University of British Columbia
Designed Patkau Architects

Happy birthday Mr. Erickson. A visionary artist, architect, and urban planner, the larger-than-life Vancouver native lea...
06/14/2026

Happy birthday Mr. Erickson.

A visionary artist, architect, and urban planner, the larger-than-life Vancouver native lead an extraordinary and illustrious career underpinned by the profound influence of international travel and the pursuit of an architecture, well ahead of its time, rooted in its physical and cultural context. A teacher and mentor to countless budding designers, Arthur was an architect with global impact who was celebrated for his progressive and technically innovative ideas, and who was unafraid to call on others to invest in better design for the betterment of our social and environmental fabric.

Arthur Erickson
June 14, 1924–May 20, 2009

[Images 1-14, 16-20] Steve Gairns
[Image 15] Brian Broster
wcmlvan

More of our bus stops should be this joyful! A mundane moment of our daily routine becomes an impactful opportunity for ...
06/13/2026

More of our bus stops should be this joyful! A mundane moment of our daily routine becomes an impactful opportunity for creativity.

“A bus stop is nuanced in its status as a landmark for gathering. It is a one-time stop on the way to somewhere else; a daily and happen-chance shelter; a place for a rest, a place to wait; often, a punctuation in routine. The Queensborough bus shelter both serves and meditates upon these functions, specifically its role as a non-destination, a means to elsewhere.

Within Furled Trail, the directional slats comprising the bench, walls and roof of the structure invoke the motif of a trail. This motif is distorted through repetition, play with scale and placement; it is a tangled path to represent the suspension of a journey.” — Studio Huizenga

Christian Zenga

A few weeks ago, the League was honoured to collaborate on an evening of art and architecture in celebration of Vancouve...
06/09/2026

A few weeks ago, the League was honoured to collaborate on an evening of art and architecture in celebration of Vancouver artist and the unveiling of her new work inspired by G. Douglas Wylie's 1962 Taylor House.

Featuring a pop-up gallery with a collection of Amanda's works, spatial floral installations by , and beautiful Japanese-inspired food, it was an inspiring evening of reflection on our local design history and to the ever-important collaboration between artists and designers.

We are grateful to for putting this evening together and for the opportunity to speak about the League's work, West Coast Modernism, and Japanese design influences at its roots.

[Image 1] Steve Gairns
[Images 2-10]

If there’s one thing you should do this summer it’s a tour of Arthur Erickson’s private sanctuary in Vancouver. It is pe...
06/08/2026

If there’s one thing you should do this summer it’s a tour of Arthur Erickson’s private sanctuary in Vancouver. It is perhaps one of Arthur’s most authentic designs, the place he called home for over 50 years, where he played and experimented with ideas that would later show up in his professional work. Led by our friend, the wonderful Brian Broster of Arthur Erickson Foundation, the tour offers detailed insights into the incredible complexity of Arthur’s designs for his garden and its relationship to a modest house rich in materials, culture, and remarkable stories. We’ve been fortunate to have visited the house and garden several times over the years, each time learning something new and inspiring.

Link in bio for tour dates and tickets.

[Images] Steve Gairns (2026).

Robert A.D. Berwick (1909-1974) was born in Shelburne, Ontario and studied architecture at the University of Toronto. Gr...
06/06/2026

Robert A.D. Berwick (1909-1974) was born in Shelburne, Ontario and studied architecture at the University of Toronto. Graduating in 1936, he relocated to Vancouver later that year to join the firm of Sharp & Thompson. Along with Charles (Ned) Pratt, Robert would become an associate of the firm in 1939 and, following WWII, a full partner in 1945. Sharp & Thompson, Berwick, Pratt, and later Thompson, Berwick, Pratt & Partners, was for decades a force in Vancouver’s architecture scene and an incubator from some of Canada’s most prominent architects.

Last week, with the Berwick family, we toured a handful of Robert Berwick’s early houses, from the late 1930s to mid-1940s, designs from a time when Robert was experimenting with new modern materials and techniques within more traditional architectural styles. It was an absolute joy to explore each of these homes with the Berwick’s and our friends at North Shore Heritage and Heritage New West.

Many thanks to Heritage New West for welcoming us to the tour, and to the homeowners for opening up their houses to us (both on and off tour).

Dana Claxton, The Bead (2026).City Centre Library, Surrey BC"Beading is a cultural thrivance. This video artwork centres...
06/04/2026

Dana Claxton, The Bead (2026).
City Centre Library, Surrey BC

"Beading is a cultural thrivance. This video artwork centres beadwork as a vital form of expression in many Indigenous cultures on Turtle Island, integral to aesthetic embellishments generally worn on the body.

From beaded moccasins, cradle boards, and dance regalia, to baby bonnets and medallions, the range of representational and abstract designs can indicate one’s cultural and tribal affiliation.

The Bead represents Wood Mountain Lakota. The late great moccasins maker Grace Peigan made all of the beadwork seen, which were from a collection of Claxton and her family and friends’ moccasins.

Dana Claxton is a critically acclaimed artist who works with film, video, photography, single/multi-channel video installation, and performance art. Her practice investigates indigenous beauty, the body, the socio-political and the spiritual." – Surrey Art Gallery

Recent studies in colour.
06/03/2026

Recent studies in colour.

: We took a trip to the suburbs to visit a small modernist enclave outside of the areas you would normally expect to fi...
06/02/2026

: We took a trip to the suburbs to visit a small modernist enclave outside of the areas you would normally expect to find it.

Here, we witnessed modernism on a spectrum, from its early days where new details were being explored within traditional typologies, to full blown modernist expression.

Coming soon to the League’s Modern Places catalogue.

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