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“Ron Thom And The Allied Arts” Book Launch & Panel Discussion At Inform

InForm Interiors is located at 50 & 97 Water Street in Gastown | Vancouver, BC | 604-682-3868 | www.informinteriors.com
InForm Interiors is located at 50 & 97 Water Street in Gastown | Vancouver, BC | 604-682-3868 | www.informinteriors.com

The GOODS from Inform Interiors

Vancouver, BC | On Saturday, September 14, Inform will be hosting a book launch and panel discussion for the new book Ron Thom And the Allied Arts. Panelists include include Tony Robins (AA Robins Architect), Matthew Soules (MSA), Sherry McKay (Assc. Prof. Architecture at UBC) and Trevor Boddy (critic, curator, historian of architecture/urbanism); moderated by Adele Weder (architectural writer, curator and cultural journalist). Join in on the discussion from 3 to 5 pm at Inform Interiors. This event is open to the public. For more information on the Ron Thom project, visit ronthomexhibition.org.

Ron Thom and the Allied Arts | Ron Thom (1923–1986) first made his name in British Columbia as a superlative architect of dramatic, award-winning houses; and then in Ontario—and internationally—as the architect of Massey College and Trent University. But Thom began his career somewhat unconventionally: he never attended architecture school. Educated at the Vancouver School of Art, he worked briefly as a visual artist before a multi-year apprenticeship with Thompson Berwick & Pratt, Vancouver’s largest and most important architectural firm. Thom embraced Richard Neutra’s call for integration of architecture and site; and Frank Lloyd Wright’s concept of organic architecture. Within this design philosophy, “architecture” comprises not only the plans and construction but also the furniture, fittings, textiles, art and ceramics. This approach informed a career that spanned almost four decades, during which time Thom and his associates designed landmark projects across the country, including the B.C. Electric Building in downtown Vancouver, Metropolitan Toronto Zoo, Shaw Festival Theatre in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Pearson College of the Pacific on Vancouver Island, the Prince Hotel in Toronto, and many significant homes in Ontario and elsewhere. The selected projects featured here—the Copp, Carmichael, Dodek, Forrest and Case houses of the Vancouver region, and Massey College and Trent University in Ontario—bespeak his formative years as a west coast artist with particular clarity. Roughly a half-century after their constructions, these university buildings and five houses continue to serve their original purposes, sheltering their inhabitants and delighting the eye: a testament to the enduring value of the art of architecture.

— Adele Weder, Curator, Ron Thom and the Allied Arts.

Details

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50 & 97 Water Street | Vancouver, BC | V6B 1A4
Telephone | 604-682-3868
Web: www.informinteriors.com
Social: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Google+ | Houzz | Vimeo | YouTube

Gallery

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The People

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Owner/Manager: Niels & Nancy Bendtsen
Kitchens & Bath Dept: Barbara Tili & Arne Salvesen
Contract Dept: Paul Sjaarda & Robyn York

About InForm Interiors

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Inform Interiors owner Niels Bendtsen has been working with contemporary furniture all his life. In 1963, he opened his first retail store in West Vancouver, focusing on well-designed and well-crafted Danish modern furniture from companies like Fritz Hansen, which the store represents to this day. After seven years in West Vancouver, the store moved to 97 Water Street in Gastown where it has stood ever since.

To further his pursuit of quality design, Niels sold the store to a Toronto retailer and moved to Denmark in 1972. He spent a decade in Europe studying and designing furniture for a variety of manufacturers.
While in Denmark, he designed the Ribbon chair, which was accepted into the permanent collection of the New York Museum of Modern Art (MoMA).

Returning from Europe in the 80s, Niels regained control of the store and created Inform Interiors. Shortly after, he began his own manufacturing line BENSEN to provide great design and great quality at an affordable price.

Inform Interiors continued to grow under the direction of owners Niels and Nancy Bendtsen. To meet the burgeoning needs of Vancouver developers Inform Projects was created with Harvey Reehal. In 2002, plans began for the expansion of the store. Rather than move away from what they had started, the decision was made to stay in Gastown for the creation of a new showroom. Working with the Heritage Management Plan, the new building retained the entire façade of the previously existing building with a newly designed interior. Niels worked with Omer Arbel to create a stunning space that could truly showcase the future vision for Inform Interiors.

In November of 2006, the new 30,000+ square foot showroom at 50 Water Street was opened to the public. A new standard of retail and architecture for the city, the minimal space is a gallery for the furniture and objects within. With the opening of the second showroom, the original space at 97 Water Street was renovated and redefined as the new home to the B&B ITALIA Shop and the BOFFI Kitchen and Bathroom display.

A strong belief in good design has been the backbone of the Inform brand, bringing the best that world of industrial design has to offer to Gastown in Vancouver.