Dal Grauer Substation

This 1953 hydro-electric substation provides power to Vancouver’s downtown peninsula and is probably the city’s truest expression of the Modernist form follows-function credo. Rather than decorating a windowless box, architect Ned Pratt celebrated the massive substation equipment by cladding the street elevation with transparent glass-and-steel curtainwall. The interior circulation corridors that are visible from the street were painted in a rich palette of colours selected by renowned local artist B.C. Binning, creating a De Stijl-like composition.

Particularly vibrant at night, this photogenic structure became an icon for Vancouver “Modern”, and was recognized as such internationally. The effect was dulled by the replacement of the original clear glass with translucent Plexiglas following a mechanical explosion in 1984. Restorations have been made and a new photographic commission by Jessica Eaton has been installed by the Capture Photography Festival and the Burrard Arts Foundation.

Source

Canada's Historic Places

More information

http://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=8777&pid=0