Vancouver-based Leckie Studio has created a striking architectural interior for a dermatology clinic – AER Skinlab. The space, conceived to serve as the cosmetic dermatology company’s main base in town, is set within Arthur Erickson’s Waterfall Building, in a modest, cloistered 880 sq ft retail space. Drawing from visuals of quarries, geological formations and the idea of minerals, nature and wellness, Leckie created a clinic interior design that feels ‘excavated from the stillness of rock’.
The internal programme was fairly straightforward – the project consists of three treatment rooms, a consultation space, and a reception area. Taking this brief and elevating it through clever, overall minimalist architecture punctuated by impactful individual design gestures, the team at Leckie Studio employed locally quarried marble from Vancouver Island, finished with a raked striation, and fluted glass to maximum effect. Apart from the considered material choice everywhere, a glowing bespoke ceiling installation out of densely packed Tyvek filaments becomes a real visual draw within the space.
Art played a key role in the architects’ idea development. ‘Leckie Studio was inspired by the Quarries work by [photographer] Edward Burtynsky, as well as [artist and film director] Matthew Barney’s The Order, from his Cremaster Cycle 3,’ the architects explain. The team cite a specific text by Burtynsky, who states: ‘The concept of the landscape as architecture has become, for me, an act of imagination… The surface of the rock face would simultaneously reveal the process of its own creation, as well as display the techniques of the quarrymen. I likened the tenacious trees and pools of water to nature's sentinels awaiting the eventual retreat of man and machine – to begin the slow process of reclamation.'
Leckie Studio was founded in 2015 by architect Michael Leckie, yet already has a few important commissions under its belt, as well as a growing portfolio. Examples include a Vancouver House penthouse, where the practice composed a warm, organic space filled with textured, natural materials inside BIG's Canadian West Coast high-rise.
INFORMATION
-
Florencia Rodriguez on the importance of curiosity, criticism and cultural freedomFlorencia Rodriguez, architect, writer and artistic director of this year’s Chicago Architecture Biennial, comments on the state of the States
-
Jean-Michel Othoniel takes over Avignon for his biggest ever exhibitionOriginally approached by Avignon to mark their 25th anniversary as the European Capital of Culture, Jean-Michel Othoniel more than rose to the challenge, installing 270 artworks around the city
-
What is the future for design in Africa? Designer Hicham Lahlou shares possibilities for the continent at largeThe Moroccan designer celebrates 30 years of his practice. Here he speaks from his studio in Rabat about his own career and the creative possibilities for design in Morocco and the rest of Africa
-
In Canada, The Nest is a three-dimensional puzzle redefining remote livingOn a wooded site on the country’s West Coast, this prefabricated retreat designed by Daria Sheina Studio is a nurturing space for low-impact living
-
Discover Canadian modernist Daniel Evan White’s pitch-perfect homesCanadian architect Daniel Evan White (1933-2012) had a gift for using the landscape to create extraordinary homes; revisit his story in an article from the Wallpaper* archives (first published in 2011)
-
A new Québec house blends open-plan living with far-reaching viewsThe Mountainside Residence is anchored into its sloping site by a concrete plinth, above which sits a main living space with tall ceilings and walls of glass
-
Four super-refined Nova Scotia ‘bunkies’ are unforgettable architectural retreatsMacKay-Lyons Sweetapple has completed a collection of elevated guest cabins – named Ridge On The Chimney – on the rugged Nova Scotian coast, all bookable for a stay
-
Smoke Lake Cabin is an off-grid hideaway only accessible by boatThis Canadian cabin is a modular and de-mountable residence, designed by Anya Moryoussef Architect (AMA) and nestled within Algonquin Provincial Park in Ontario
-
Ten contemporary homes that are pushing the boundaries of architectureA new book detailing 59 visually intriguing and technologically impressive contemporary houses shines a light on how architecture is evolving
-
Explore the Perry Estate, a lesser-known Arthur Erickson project in CanadaThe Perry estate – a residence and studio built for sculptor Frank Perry and often visited by his friend Bill Reid – is now on the market in North Vancouver
-
A new lakeshore cottage in Ontario is a spectacular retreat set beneath angled zinc roofsFamily Cottage by Vokac Taylor mixes spatial gymnastics with respect for its rocky, forested waterside site
