A shimmering new residential development is bringing high design to Metrotown, a rapidly growing area – buoyed by Canada’s second largest shopping mall and rapid transit hubs – in the Vancouver suburb of Burnaby. The sleepy Kingsway corridor area, full of ageing strip malls, is enjoying a wave of new high-rise development thanks in part to Asian real estate investors.
Echoing a trend in downtown Vancouver that has seen local developers bring in international talent – for projects ranging from Norman Foster’s Jameson House to Ole Scheeren’s design for a new tower in Coal Harbour – Rize Alliance is launching Gold House. The two 40-storey tower, mixed-use development (designed by local firm Chris Dikeakos Architects) is not only bringing much needed density to the Kingsway corridor, but also internationally known interior designer Lisa Garriss of HBA.
Celebrated primarily for her globe hopping hotel design – from the Armani hotel in Milan, to the Karma Resort in Bali, and other projects in Dubai, Miami and Goa – Garriss says she always ‘approaches each project in accordance with its environment’.
Based in LA, Garriss was impressed by Vancouver’s natural beauty and lush greenery. Rather than compete with the scenery, she kept interior palettes in rich neutrals that would 'draw in light' from the outside.
Noting that ‘in Los Angeles it’s all about shelter from the sun’, in Vancouver her design approach was informed by the need to maximise daylight in a northern rainforest. While the gold theme is an important one to the project, Garriss expresses it subtly, through lighting fixtures and gold hued fabrics.
More dramatic gestures are saved for the lobby, where the 40 ft high ceiling is illuminated by large rectangular gold lanterns and flanked by a display wall of golden, curved metal panels that read like Gehry-esque sculpture.
The development is a further example of a wave of new high-rise projects hitting the sleepy Kingsway corridor
Designed by local firm Chris Dikeakos Architects, the two 40-storey tower, mixed-use development is also being worked on by internationally known interior designer Lisa Garriss of HBA
Garriss was impressed by Vancouver’s natural beauty and lush greenery; rather than compete with the scenery, she kept interior palettes in rich neutrals that would 'draw in light' from the outside
While the gold theme is an important one to the project, Garriss expresses it subtly, through lighting fixtures and gold hued fabrics
-
Lee Broom reimagines the Christmas tree at Mandarin Oriental MayfairThe London hotel unveils an inventive take on the festive tradition – with absolutely no needles
-
A Brasília apartment harnesses the power of optical illusionCoDa Arquitetura’s Moiré apartment in the Brazilian capital uses smart materials to create visual contrast and an artful welcome
-
RIBA reveals the first pair of shortlisted structures for the House of the Year 2025Six practices are up for the award, which will be announced on Grand Designs in December. The first two houses, by Izat Arundell and Hugh Strange Architects are previewed below
-
The Architecture Edit: Wallpaper’s houses of the monthFrom Malibu beach pads to cosy cabins blanketed in snow, Wallpaper* has featured some incredible homes this month. We profile our favourites below
-
Explore the riches of Morse House, the Canadian modernist gem on the marketMorse House, designed by Thompson, Berwick & Pratt Architects in 1982 on Vancouver's Bowen Island, is on the market – might you be the new custodian of its modernist legacy?
-
Cosy-up in a snowy Canadian cabin inspired by utilitarian farmhousesInspired by local farmhouses, Canadian cabin Timbertop is a minimalist shelter overlooking the woodland home of wild deer, porcupines and turkeys
-
Buy yourself a Sanctuary, a serene house above the British Columbia landscapeThe Sanctuary was designed by BattersbyHowat for clients who wanted a contemporary home that was also a retreat into nature. Now it’s on the market via West Coast Modern
-
La Maison de la Baie de l’Ours melds modernism into the shores of a Québécois lakeACDF Architecture’s grand family retreat in Quebec offers a series of flowing living spaces and private bedrooms beneath a monumental wooden roof
-
Peel back maple branches to reveal this cosy midcentury Vancouver gemOsler House, a midcentury Vancouver home, has been refreshed by Scott & Scott Architects, who wanted to pay tribute to the building's 20th-century modernist roots
-
A spectacular waterside house in Canada results from a radical overhaulSplyce Design’s Shoreline House occupies an idyllic site in British Columbia. Refurbished and updated, the structure has been transformed into a waterside retreat
-
Hilborn House, one of Arthur Erickson’s few residential projects, is now on the marketThe home, first sketched on an envelope at Montreal Airport, feels like a museum of modernist shapes, natural materials and indoor-outdoor living
