GESAMTKUNSTWERK

Westbank has built a practice around long-term commitments to artistry, sustainability and city-building. These commitments underlie an orientation towards projects like Woodwards, Vancouver House, Mirvish Village, Telus Garden and Oakridge – catalysts for larger change that go beyond the borders of the projects themselves. We are here to create. To provoke. To ignite. We are the vehicle for a new movement of cultural expression.

As the practice matures, we have become more ambitious. With every new project reflecting our commitment to the philosophy behind Gesamkunstwerk, or in our recent work the Japanese philosophy behind layering, the net effect is that our work becomes much more complex and far-reaching.

The core of Westbank’s mission is to create a body of work with a high degree of artistry that helps foster more equitable and beautiful cities. Westbank is active across Canada and in the United States, with projects including luxury residential, Five Star hotels, retail, office, rental, district energy systems, affordable housing initiatives and public art. Established in 1992, we are one of North America’s leading developers, with offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Seattle, Shanghai, Beijing, Taiwan, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shenzhen and over 25 billion dollars of projects completed or under development.

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Philosophy
May 13, 2016

BIG Partners with Hyperloop One

Elon Musk’s Hyperloop transit was proposed in 2013. Today the genius behind Tesla and SpaceX has done its first test of Hyperloop One. For those not sure what Hyperloop is, it’s a new transit system that goes above speeds of 700 mph , and can take one from Los Angeles to San Francisco in half […]

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April 20, 2016

An Evening With Kengo Kuma: Recap

On April 12th, a mix of Vancouverites, architects, planners, city builders, artists and students gathered at the University of British Columbia’s Chan Centre for “Small to Large, an Evening with Kengo Kuma”. Kuma took the audience on his journey from Small to Large, first exploring the small, soulful scale of his early Small Scale Projects. […]

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April 03, 2016

Google’s New Head Quarters

Our Vancouver House architect, Bjarke Ingels, among many other developments has released images of his co-design for Google’s new headquarters in California. He is deeming this development “Google 2.0” and wants to accomplish more of a workshop feel than a corporate office environment. In a bold new move, they are ditching the Google cubicles for […]

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March 03, 2016

#BIGToronto: In Conversation with Bjarke Ingels and Guests

When the world was introduced to Habitat 67, designed by the Israeli-Canadian architect Moshe Safdie as the Canadian Pavilion for the World Exposition of 1967, it was intended as an experimental solution for high-quality housing in dense urban environments. Safdie’s pioneering design was not only revolutionary in its time, Habitat 67 has continued to influence […]

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March 02, 2016

PM Trudeau visits TELUS Garden – one of the greenest buildings in North America

At the launch of the Smart Prosperity initiative held at TELUS Garden, and attended by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, TELUS garden was awarded Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification by the Canada Green Building Council (CAGBC). “TELUS continues to push the boundaries on sustainability through its focus on innovation, and that is even more […]

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March 01, 2016

Bloor Hot Docs Cinema – The Infinite Happiness

Renowned Danish architect Bjarke Ingels tackles the question: can we foster a sense of community in buildings that house hundreds or thousands of people? Find his answer in the famous ‘8’ building in Copenhagen—an ultramodern loop of apartments whose 500 residents can traverse all nine floors by bicycle, while children attend kindergarten on the ground floor. Taking us […]

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February 23, 2016

Panel of celebrated urbanists welcome Bjarke to Toronto

“How can architecture build community?” That’s the title of Bjarke Ingels’ discussion in Toronto this week, and it captures the ambition of BIG’s design for a site on downtown Toronto’s King Street West. A panel of celebrated urbanists will join Bjarke, moderated by Denise Donlon, for an evening of conversation of how architecture creates community. Join us as […]

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February 02, 2016

How can architecture create communities?

We see our projects as active engagements with community, as part of a dialogue between what is built, the place where it is situated and the people who live there. Our projects are conceptualized and designed with an awareness of a much larger urban narrative. Last August we announced that we had retained Bjarke Ingels […]

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December 15, 2015

Oh, Christmas Tree

Versace Home and the Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel have partnered on an artful holiday project. Using gold Versace Home chairs, the installation shines in the hotel lobby next to a 15-foot traditional tree.

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December 01, 2015

Westbank collects 24,000 lbs of food, clothing, and toys for Syrian refugees

In light of the worldwide Syrian refugee crisis, Westbank is donating 12 fully furnished and stocked apartments in downtown Vancouver to the Immigrant Services Society of BC. These apartments will be used as transitional accommodation for families arriving in Vancouver until more permanent housing can be found. As a part of Westbank’s commitment to help […]

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September 20, 2015

Reimagining Mirvish Village

By design, cities can be made better. Mirvish Village marks a bold and necessary shift in city-building: a comprehensive purpose-built community of rental apartments and innovative retail. Every one of the 1,100 suites here will be rental—not condos for sale—and nearly half will be two bedrooms and up, suitable for families (a 50 space daycare […]

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September 18, 2015

TELUS Garden officially opens

TELUS Garden’s 22-storey, 450,000-square-foot office tower, designed by Henriquez Partners Architects and developed by Westbank, is officially Vancouver’s first LEED Platinum certified office tower with the distinction of the highest LEED score card ever to the Canada Green Building Council. One of the standout sustainable features of the development is the innovative district energy system […]

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August 11, 2015

Bjarke Ingels’ BIG Arrival in Toronto

King Street West is crowded with luxury condos and five-star restaurants, but there is still room for more. Westbank Corp., along with Allied Properties REIT of Toronto, have announced plans to re-imagine a parcel of land that sits at the epicentre of the trendy strip. The design has to evolve on its own creative time. […]

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May 28, 2014

GWERK Profile No. 15,101: Mark Busse

It’s the last week of the Gesamtkunstwerk exhibition, and we have a few more GWERK Profiles to share before it all comes to a close. First up is Mark Busse, partner at Industrial Brand, resident Foodist and host of CreativeMornings, Interesting Vancouver and Likemind Vancouver. Tell us about yourself and what you do. My bio includes a bunch of […]

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May 23, 2014

Bold City-Building Ideas Generated at Gesamtkunstwerk Exhibition

Gesamtkunstwerk, the multi-media exhibition on architecture and city-building, developed by Westbank Projects Corp. and designed by the Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), will be extended through May 30, due to popularity and overwhelming demand. In the eight weeks since opening, more than 15,000 visitors from 12 countries have looked at the thought, skills and passion that go […]

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May 22, 2014

Westbank Salon Series: Bruce Haden Recap

One of the most thrilling things for those behind the Westbank Salon Series is seeing the interaction between our incredibly engaging salon speakers and attendees, many of whom are dedicated regulars. Our latest guest was Bruce Haden, a partner at DIALOG and DIALOG partner-in-charge for the Vancouver House collaboration with the Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG). […]

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May 20, 2014

Westbank Salon Series: James K.M. Cheng

Hong Kong-born James K.M. Cheng studied architecture at the University of Washington and the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University. James worked under Bing Thom as one of Arthur Erickson‘s team on Robson Square, then founded his own practice after co-winning the 1978 design competition for a Chinese Cultural Centre for Vancouver. The firm of James K.M. Cheng Architects has since developed a global reputation for housing, focusing on […]

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May 15, 2014

GWERK Profile No. 3,589: Roy Yen

It’s been fantastic speaking to all the amazing contributors, influencers and people that make up Vancouver in our GWERK Profiles feature! This week we spent some time with Roy Yen, Producer and Principal of soomö Entertainment Company. Tell us about yourself and what you do. Fairly typical to native Vancouverites, I was born and raised here on […]

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May 15, 2014

Westbank Salon Series: Mike Harcourt Recap

We welcomed Mike Harcourt, the former mayor of Vancouver and former premier of British Columbia, as the seventh guest speaker of the Westbank Salon Series. Engaging and remarkably insightful, Mike began his talk by telling attendees about his career start as a young lawyer with an interest in community equity and human rights, before getting […]

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May 13, 2014

Westbank Salon Series: Andy Yan Recap

It was our pleasure to welcome Andy Yan, a senior urban planner at Bing Thom Architects and researcher at BTworks, as the latest Westbank Salon Series guest speaker. On the evening’s agenda was “Figuring Out Vancouver: Trends to Consider in City-Building”, presented by Andy in a series of graphs with insightful data and images on the […]

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May 08, 2014

Westbank Salon Series: Reid Shier Recap

The Westbank Salon Series stepped into spring with Reid Shier, the Director/Curator of Presentation House Gallery in North Vancouver and public art consultant for private developers and public agencies across Canada. Reid, an Emily Carr University alum, spoke to the crowd about on working with Governor General prize-winning firm Patkau Architects on a new Presentation […]

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May 07, 2014

Public Art and Westbank: Part Two

“A transformative artwork “Spinning Chandelier” re-imagines an under-appreciated civic space, setting a new international precedent for conceptual art at city scale. For Vancouverites, this will become the new ‘Nine O’clock Gun’ — the gift of an extraordinary new urban ritual.” – Reid Shier, public art consultant and Director of Presentation House Gallery. “Spinning Chandelier”, by […]

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May 07, 2014

Public Art and Westbank: Part One

In a class of its own as a development industry patron of creativity, Westbank has embraced demanding, avant-garde work by the world’s finest artists, using its projects as vast canvases. Westbank-commissioned new public art are integrated into its Vancouver developments. Previous Westbank public art commissions include “Abbott & Cordova, 7 August 1971” by Stan Douglas, […]

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May 07, 2014

Westbank Salon Series: Mike Harcourt

On Tuesday May 13, 2014, we will be welcoming Mike Harcourt as our Westbank Salon Series guest speaker. Mike Harcourt is an Urbanist, Former Mayor of Vancouver, and the Former Premier of British Columbia. As both former Premier of British Columbia, and former Mayor and City Councillor in Vancouver, Mike Harcourt helped British Columbia earn its reputation as one of the most livable […]

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May 07, 2014

Westbank Salon Series: Andy Yan

On Sunday May 11, 2014, Andy Yan will be our sixth guest speaker of the Westbank Salon Series. Born and raised in Vancouver, Andy Yan is a Senior Urban Planner with Bing Thom Architects and a researcher with BTAworks, the firm’s research and development division. BTAworks research projects have included studies of ownership, occupancy, prices and “empty condo” patterns in Downtown Vancouver, […]

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May 02, 2014

Westbank Salon Series: Scot Hein Recap

As the second month of our Westbank Salon Series approaches, we are thrilled with the success and overwhelming positive response and turnout to these intimate dialogues with Vancouver’s eminent city-builders and designers. Scot Hein is our fourth guest speaker of the series. He began this week’s salon with explaining his backstory to a crowd of […]

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April 30, 2014

Westbank Projects Corp. Announces Platinum Partnership with World Housing CCC

For those who have seen the World Housing scale-model home as part of the Gesamtkunstwerk exhibition, today marks an exciting official announcement: Westbank Projects Corp. President, Ian Gillespie, announced his company’s partnership with World Housing. This social venture partnership model, means that for every condominium purchased at its newest development, Vancouver House, World Housing is […]

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April 24, 2014

Visitor No. 5,386: Geoffrey Erickson

This week, we’re launching GWERK Profiles, a new feature on the amazing contributors, influencers and people that make up Vancouver. In the series, we get to know a few of the 8,000+ visitors who have come through our exhibition doors, learn about their personal GWERK experiences and continue the dialogue on why they think city-building […]

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April 17, 2014

Westbank Salon Series: Chris Phillips

Chris Phillips is founding partner of Phillips Farevaag Smallenberg (now PFS Studio) Landscape Architects. A fellow of the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects, Chris Phillips is widely respected for his ability to create deeply memorable designs for a wide range of complex urban design and public open space projects. Over the past twenty years, he […]

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April 10, 2014

Westbank Salon Series: Larry Beasley

Larry Beasley is the ‘Distinguished Practice’ Professor of Planning at the University of British Columbia, the founding principal of Beasley and Associates, an international planning and urban design practice, and was the Co-Director of Planning for the City of Vancouver during the formative years of its inner-city transformation. Beasley is a Fellow of the Canadian […]

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April 09, 2014

Birth of Vancouverism: Arthur Erickson

“It is time that Vancouver started thinking about its inevitable fate: a great city of ten million people.” – Arthur Erickson, 1992 (Greater Vancouver population then, 1.5 million) A visionary 1955 sketch, then two boldly inventive buildings by Arthur Erickson set our downtown city-building agenda for the next half century — signs of things to […]

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March 31, 2014

Looking Back at Beach and Howe

The Beach and Howe area was once a place brimming with activity around lumber, from log sorting to storage. Robertson & Hackett Sawmill Company operated just south of where the Gesamtkunstwerk exhibition space now stands, and the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) also ran south of Beach Avenue, alongside the mill for easy access to transport. […]

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March 13, 2014

The Art of Development

From initiating Vancouver’s first developer-run public art competition for Bute Street alongside its Palisades and Residences on Georgia projects, to large scale urban commissions to Britain’s Liam Gillick at Fairmont Pacific Rim and Vancouver’s Stan Douglas at Woodward’s atrium, Westbank has led Canada’s development industry in integrating leading-edge contemporary art into its developments. The developer’s long-term commitment to public art includes commissions to […]

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March 03, 2014

Why is Westbank Producing This Exhibition?

Why is Westbank producing the Gesamtkunstwerk exhibition? Because cities matter. More than half of all Canadians live in but four cities. Cities are economic and cultural engines. Well functioning cities offer solutions to many of the grand challenges we face. Cities are made, crafted and designed but making them is seldom transparent. The exhibition opens […]

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March 01, 2014

Coming March 2014: The Gesamtkunstwerk Exhibition

On March 22, 2014, the Gesamtkunstwerk exhibition — designed by the Bjarke Ingels Group and produced by Westbank — will officially open its doors to the public. The centre piece of the exhibition is a model of Vancouver House, their newest project slated to break ground in 12 months.  Designed by the internationally renowned firm, […]

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February 27, 2014

The History of Gesamtkunstwerk

There’s a bright new light in Vancouver, in the form of a neon installation just off the Granville Street Bridge, spelling out a tongue-twister of a word: Gesamtkunstwerk. A brave many attempted to say it (pronounced get-zahmt-KOONST-VAIRK), and an even braver few guessed what it meant. Coined in the 1820s, this German word was popularized […]

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