Douglas Cardinal

Douglas J. Cardinal was born in Calgary, Alberta in 1934. He studied in British Columbia and Texas before returning to Alberta to begin his architectural career.

Cardinal’s Métis heritage gave him the opportunity to combine his strongly held aboriginal philosophies with traditional architectural training, creating a new style of building.

The complexity of his organic designs required the use of new technology. For St. Albert’s project, his office was one of the first to use Computer Aided Drafting and Design in North America.

“I think in curvilinear forms. My sketches are all curved forms, amorphous shapes. That’s the way I think, the way I’m made…. An organic building satisfying the needs of the people inside the building but having the building flow along the river and address the river in a flowing motion is what more or less inspired the design.” – Douglas Cardinal

Image Credits: Cardinal and Fowler at the last major concrete pour on the Council Chambers roof in March of 1983; Cardinal photographed in 2016 by Bruce Reeve (original image on Flickr)