Jeffrey Thorsteinson and Brennan Smith, authors of ‘Green Blankstein Russell and Associates: An Architectural Legacy.’ (HANDOUT)
A new book commissioned by the Winnipeg Architecture Foundation is honouring the architectural firm responsible for creating some of the city’s best-known landmarks.
Green Blankstein Russell (GBR) and Associates was founded in 1932 and designed some of Winnipeg’s most iconic structures, such as City Hall and the Winnipeg International Airport.
Their work is now being illustrated in a new collection of more than 300 images in “Green Blankstein Russell and Associates: An Architectural Legacy.”
“GBR, in no small measure, encouraged and fostered the talent and diverse staff that created the architectural record that is explored in the following pages,” said Easton Lexier, a structural engineer who worked at GBR for more than 50 years.
Lexier has provided the book’s foreword, which was written by Jeffrey Thorsteinson and Brennan Smith.
The book aims to educate the public about the innovative minds at work at GBR, who helped shape the architecture and industry of design in Winnipeg.
“The firm was a kind of engine: an institution through which many of Canada’s notable architects, designers, and engineers came through on their paths to prominence,” says Thorsteinson. “In this respect, too, the office was pioneering, deliberately functioning as one of the first offices to bring women and individuals belonging to minority groups into architectural practice.”
The book officially launches December 7 at McNally Robinson Booksellers, but will have a pre-release, gallery exhibit and book talk at the Jewish Heritage Centre on December 5. Both events begin at 7 p.m.
