Architectural Record – August 2019

ARCHITECT: Nelson Byrd Woltz

Landscape Architects — Thomas Woltz,

Breck Gastinger, Nathan Foley, Sandra

Nam Cioffi, Jen Trompetter, Alisha Savage,

Siobhan Brooks, Fraser Stuart, Kari

Roynesdal, Mandi Fung

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT OF RECORD:

Dialog Design

GENERAL CONTRACTOR:

Clark Builders

CLIENT: Aga Khan Trust for Culture

OWNER: University of Alberta Botanic

Garden

SIZE: 435,600 gross square feet

CONSTRUCTION COST: $25 million

COMPLETION DATE: October 2018

SOURCES

SYSTEMS: Rain Bird, ACO Drain, Zurn

HARDSCAPE: Expocrete, Owen Sound

Ledgerock, A. Lacroix Granit, Permaloc

LIGHTING: BEGA, WAC Lighting

credits

(^72) ARCHITECTURAL RECORD AUGUST 2019 BUILDING TYPE STUDY LANDSCAPE & LEISURE
garden, their ornate tracery would have supplied a welcome layer of
texture, play of light, intimacy of scale, and permeability to spaces
beyond. Here, however, the filigreed curtain of woodland that sur­
rounds the garden suggests a missed opportunity: a simpler, more
contemporary panel design would have let the natural intricacy of
the parkland forest shine.
Swaths of flowering annuals, climate­adapted perennials, and
pollinator­friendly plants fill sunken gardens edging the chahar bagh’s
quadrants. Historically, sunken gardens brought the scent and fruit of
citrus trees to the visitor’s level, but here they set the flowers at a great­
er remove. At first this seems a puzzling choice—until you remember
the garden’s primary goal is to create a public space for dialogue and
understanding. The sunken beds support this goal by seeming to el­