VICTORIA, BC.- Plans for the revamped Art Gallery of Greater Victoria are on the drawing board. Director of the AGGV, Jon Tupper, announced today that LWPAC Lang Wilson Practice in Architecture Culture Inc. + Moore Architecture Inc. Associated Architects have been selected as architects for the renewal of the Gallery on Moss Street.

The Gallery’s commitment to a well-planned renewal of its existing facility was announced in 2012. An international request for proposals was issued at the time, seeking architects who could create a design that complements the building’s location in the heart of Victoria’s Rockland neighbourhood. 18 teams of architects responded and 3 were shortlisted and asked to submit design concepts.

“The AGGV board was unanimous in its choice of the integrated architectural team of LWPAC+MA” declared Tupper. “The two firms provide the AGGV with a full range of resources, skills, and services and will collaborate on the project”.

LWPAC Lang Wilson Practice in Architecture Culture Inc. is the Lead Design Architect and will manage the project as the Architect of Record. Moore Architecture Inc. Associated Architects will contribute their experience with major local projects and their understanding of approval processes, heritage alterations, and community collaboration.

“We are excited by the prospect of expanded public space for community engagement, the increased state-of-the art exhibit space and the improved and expanded storage facilities,” continued Tupper. “Hiring LWPAC+MA at this time will help us determine if our goals are achievable. You will also hear more about the public consultation process in the coming weeks which will be an intrinsic element as we move forward.”

The project is slated for completion in the Fall of 2017.

LWPAC Lang Wilson Practice in Architecture Culture Inc., based in Vancouver since 1999, is an interdisciplinary architecture and design practice with projects completed in Canada, China, the USA and Chile. The firm has, among others, won national and international architecture design awards including a Governor General’s Medal Award of Excellence, Lieutenant Governor’s Medal, and AIBC Innovation Awards. In 2012 LWPAC won the Western Living Designer / Architect of the Year award.

LWPAC is led by Oliver Lang and Cynthia Wilson, Lang has been Acting Chair of the Vancouver Urban Design Panel and continues to serve on various advisory design panels. Prior to LWPAC, he was the Chief Design Architect for the Corning Glass Museum at Smith-Miller + Hawkinson Architects in New York City. Wilson was Adjunct Professor at UBC’s SALA in 2013, and has previously worked at Zeidler-Roberts Partnership and Selldorf Architects. The partners were trained in Berlin, Barcelona and New York City and received professional degrees in architecture and advanced design from Columbia University and the TU Berlin (Oliver) and UBC (Cynthia).

Moore Architecture Inc. Associated Architects, based in Victoria British Columbia, was formed by Tom Moore in 2012 to build on his 25 plus years of work on Vancouver Island as a Principal and Architect with Moore Paterson Architects Inc. and Stantec Architecture Ltd. Awards include AIBC Lieutenant Governor’s Award of Merit, numerous Heritage Society of British Columbia awards, and Hallmark Society awards. Tom Moore was Architect and designer of many notable projects which include the Victoria International Airport additions and renovations, Saanich Commonwealth Place, adaptive reuse of heritage buildings such as Dragon Alley, the Monaco, and the Crystal Gardens (Victoria Conference Centre), additions and renovations to the Oak Bay Recreation Centre and Vancouver Island Visitor Centre in the Comox Valley. He was the Planner of the Royal Jubilee Hospital Master Plan for Island Health.

Moore has been a Member of the Victoria Civil Heritage Trust Board and Architectural

Conservation Committee, the City of Victoria Urban Design Panel (past Chair) and Victoria Airport Authority and Oak Bay Recreation Commission Public Art Committees.