There’s no doubt that the late Arthur Erickson’s work was highly influenced by his travels to Japan. One only needs to look at the iconic Smith House to see a beautiful blend of Japanese and West Coast sensibilities at play. Michelangelo Sabatino, Assistant Professor at the Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture, University of Houston retraces Erickson’s first trip to Japan in 1961 in his illustrated talk touching on – amongst other things – Erickson’s award-winning design for the Canadian Pavillion for Osaka 1970.
Journeys to the East: Arthur Erickson & Japan lecture will trace Erickson’s journeys and writings on Japan, identifying specific buildings and gardens that Erickson actually visited and studied, particularly in his first visit to Japan in 1961 and as recorded in his critical essays for Canadian Architect in the ‘60s. The lecture will also situate Erickson’s “Journey to the East” as part of a longstanding tradition of modern Western architects who appropriated cues from Japanese art, architecture and landscape ranging from Frank Lloyd Wright and Bruno Taut in the first half of the century, to events such as the display of a Japanese house at MoMA in New York (1953) and the publication in English of Yasuhiro Ishimoto, Walter Gropius, and Kenzo Tange’s study of Katsura in 1960.
The lecture is on November 25th at 7pm, Vancouver International Film Centre. Tix and more information can be found on the Arthur Erickson Conservancy web site.
By Melanie Carlson
