Humanities Centre – University of Alberta

“I particularly remember graduate studies in the Humanities Centre at the University of Alberta (Edmonton, AB). Opened in 1972, the Humanities Centre, designed by renowned Edmonton architect John McIntosh, is a striking Brutalist structure in the inverted ziggurat style, with light-filled atriums, boldly textured finishes, and expressive features like a circular lecture hall pod.  The building was a joy to spend several years in, combining classrooms, a library, lecture theatres, lounges, and faculty offices. It is a brilliant blend of grand volumes and intimate human scale spaces, comprised of a robust and broad array of “noble” materials, creating an exhilarating blend of textures and rhythms.

Unfortunately, the University of Alberta is currently on an unprecedented demolition spree. Spurred by huge provincial cuts to university funding beginning in 2019 and its desire to remove deferred maintenance liability ($865 million in 2020) from its books, the university has demolished hundreds of thousands of square feet of predominantly mid-century modern buildings since 2019. The Humanities Centre is set for demolition in the next several years.”(Booklet Positive Lived Experiences of Quality in the Built Environment 2024, p.42).