Shim-Sutcliffe Architects is a Canadian architectural design practice based in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Practice

Shim-Sutcliffe Architects was founded in 1994 by

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

professor Brigitte Shim and her partner Howard Sutcliffe. The founders have been collaborating since the early 1980s. The studio's portfolio encompasses built work at all scales including the design and construction of buildings as well as furniture, lighting and landscapes. Shim-Sutcliffe works with public, private, and non-profit clients across Canada with projects in Hawaii and Russia.

Brigitte Shim

Brigitte Shim (born 1958, Kingston, Jamaica) emigrated to Canada in 1965. She received a degree in environmental studies in 1981 and architecture in 1983 from the

University of Waterloo The University of Waterloo (UWaterloo, UW, or Waterloo) is a public research university with a main campus in Waterloo, Ontario Waterloo is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is one of three cities in the Regional Municipality ...

, Ontario. Shim apprenticed with architect Arthur Erickson in Vancouver in 1981 and worked with

Baird Baird may refer to: Places United States * Baird, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Baird, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Baird, Texas, a city * Baird, Washington, a community * Baird Mountains, Alaska * Baird Inlet, Alaska ...

/Sampson Architects in Toronto from 1983-1987. Shim has been a professor at the

John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design The John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design (commonly referred to as Daniels Faculty) is an academic division at the University of Toronto which focuses on architecture, urban design and art. The Faculty was the first school ...

at the

since 1988, where she teaches architectural design studios and courses in the history and theory of landscape architecture. In 1997, her work in the Second Year architecture design studio was recognized by the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...

Education Honors. Shim has also taught at the

Yale School of Architecture The Yale School of Architecture (YSOA) is one of the constituent professional schools of Yale University, and is generally considered to be one of the best architecture schools in the United States. The School awards the degrees of Master of Arc ...

as Eero Saarinen Visiting Professor in 2014, 2010 and 2005 and as an invited visiting professor at the

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

Harvard Graduate School of Design The Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) is the graduate school of design at Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It offers master's and doctoral programs in architecture, landscape architecture, urban ...

, the University of Auckland’s School of Architecture and Planning, as well as others. She has served on several international and national design juries including the 2007 Aga Khan Architecture Award Master Jury as well as architecture and design committees including the board of Build Toronto, the National Capital Commission's architectural advisory board, and the

Waterfront Toronto Waterfront Toronto (incorporated as the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corporation) is an organization that oversees revitalization projects along the Toronto waterfront. Established in 2001 as a public–public partnership between the City ...

Design Review Panel. She is also on the advisory council of BEAT (Building Equity in Architecture Toronto), which supports greater diversity and inclusion in the profession. In 2022, the Association of Chinese Canadian Entrepreneurs recognized Brigitte Shim with the ACCE Lifetime Achievement Award, which over the years has recognized many of the nation’s influential political, business, and community leaders.

Howard Sutcliffe

Howard Sutcliffe (born 1958, Yorkshire, England) emigrated to Canada in 1964. He met Brigitte while studying at the University of Waterloo where he also earned degrees in environmental studies (1981) and architecture (1983). After graduating, he worked successively in the studios of Paul Merrick of Vancouver and for

Ronald Thom Ronald James Thom, (May 15, 1923 – October 29, 1986) was a Canadian architect. He is well known for two works: Massey College and Trent University's riverside campus. Early years He was born in Penticton, British Columbia, the son of James ...

Barton Myers Barton Myers (born November 6, 1934) is an American architect and president of Barton Myers Associates Inc. in Santa Barbara, California. With a career spanning more than 40 years, Myers is a fellow of the American Institute of Architects and wa ...

, and Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg ( KPMB) Architects of Toronto. He played a key role on several award-winning competition teams for both Barton Myers and KPMB including

Kitchener City Hall Kitchener City Hall is the seat of municipal government of Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. It has gone through many iterations through the 20th century, culminating in the current building, which opened in 1993. History The original location of ...

(KPMB). He was the first recipient of the Ronald J. Thom Award given for early design achievement by the Canada Council for the Arts.

Recognition

To date, Shim and Sutcliffe have received 16 Governor General's Medal and Awards for Architecture from the

Royal Architectural Institute of Canada The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) is a not-for-profit, national organization that has represented architects and architecture for over 100 years, in existence since 1907. The RAIC is the leading voice for excellence in the built ...

(RAIC) and an

(AIA) National Honor Award. In 2021 they were awarded the RAIC Gold Medal, the country's highest architectural honour in recognition of a significant and lasting contribution to Canadian architecture. The jury attributed their relentless pursuit of excellence to the production of a significant body of exceptional design works and determined that "the poetic quality and independence of their design work, their thoughtful and holistic consideration of site, materiality, typologies, the senses, and their in inventiveness have made Shim and Sutcliffe exemplars of architectural practice in Canada." In 2013, the couple was presented with the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

for "designing sophisticated structures that represent the best of Canadian design to the world." They were also the recipients of the 2020 Heritage of the Future Award for "an outstanding body of work that prioritizes the integration of built form with natural environment, the innovative use of building materials, and exceptional design."

Publications

Shim-Sutcliffe has their work published in a wide variety of mediums since established. Selected publications include: * ''Shim-Sutcliffe: The 2001 Charles & Ray Eames Lecture'' published by Michigan Architecture Papers, 2002 * ''Site Unseen: Laneway Architecture & Urbanism in Toronto'' edited by Brigitte Shim & Donald Chong, 2004 * ''Integral House'' by Brigitte Shim and Edward Burtynsky, 2006 * ''Five North American Architects: An Anthology by Kenneth Frampton,'' 2012 * ''Shim-Sutcliffe: The Passage of Time'' edited by Anette W. LeCuyer, 2014 * ''Canadian Architecture: Evolving a Cultural Identity'' by Leslie Jen, 2021 * ''Shim-Sutcliffe: The Architecture of Point William; A laboratory of living'' edited by Kenneth Frampton & Michael Webb, 2021

Notable Projects

* 1988: Garden Pavilion and Reflecting Pool * 1989: House on Horse Lake * 1994: Laneway House * 1995: Craven Road House * 1999: Muskoka Boathouse * 2000: Moorelands Camp Dining Hall * 2001: Weathering Steel House * 2004: Ravine Guest House and Reflecting Pool * 2004: Corkin Gallery * 2006: Craven Road Studio * 2009:

Integral House Integral House is a private residence located at 194 Roxborough Drive in the Rosedale neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The project was commissioned by mathematician James Stewart as a residence incorporating a performance space, and was ...

* 2013: Residence for the Sisters of St. Joseph Toronto * 2015: Wong Dai Sin Temple * 2022: Ace Hotel Toronto Shim-Sutcliffe Architects also debuted specialty furniture and lighting items for their clients. Most well known is the HAB Collection that is currently manufactured and distributed by Nienkämper. Another popular item from the studio is the Firefly Lamp which is meant to resemble fireflies in a mason jar that glows even after the lamp is turned off.

References

External links

Shim Sutcliffe websiteFinding aid for the Shim-Sutcliffe fonds
Canadian Centre for Architecture {{Authority control Architecture firms of Canada