Étienne Gaboury

Étienne Gaboury
Born April 24, 1930
Swan Lake, Manitoba
Occupation Architect
Awards CM
Buildings Royal Canadian Mint building in Winnipeg, the Precious Blood Church, the new Saint Boniface Cathedral and the Esplanade Riel

Étienne Gaboury, CM OM (born Étienne-Joseph Gaboury on April 24, 1930 in Swan Lake, Manitoba) is a Canadian architect from Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Early Life

Gaboury was born on April 24, 1930 in Swan Lake, Manitoba to Napoléon and Valentine Gaboury, who were farmers. Gaboury was the youngest of 11 children. [1]

Gaboury, a distant relative of Louis Riel, studied architecture and Latin at the University of Manitoba. He began his studies at the University of Manitoba in 1949 and graduated in 1953 with a BA in Latin philosophy.[1] He then graduated with a bachelor's degree in architecture from the University of Manitoba in 1958[1] before studying at the Ecole Des Beaux Arts in Paris in 1958-59. [1]


Works

Gaboury is known for his regional prairie designs which incorporate elements of the physical, emotional and spiritual. He has completed more than 300 projects around the world including the Canadian Embassy in Mexico and is considered one of the most important Canadian architects working today.

Gaboury's Royal Canadian Mint (Winnipeg)

Notable projects by Gaboury include the Royal Canadian Mint building, the new Saint Boniface Cathedral and the Esplanade Riel, all in Winnipeg. The tipi-style Precious Blood Church completed in 1968 in St. Boniface, Manitoba, features eleven interior wood beams which form a smoke hole like skylight thirty meters above the altar. [2] Gaboury's work in Manitoba is not limited to Winnipeg, as he was the architect for the Helen Betty Osborne Ininew Education Resource Centre (HBOIERC) in Norway House, Manitoba. [1]

Sculpture of Louis Riel

"Tortured" Louis Riel statue at the Collège universitaire de Saint-Boniface

Gaboury designed the wall that surrounds sculptor Marcien Lemay's depiction of Canadian Métis leader Louis Riel as a naked and tortured figure. The statue was unveiled in 1970 and stood on the grounds of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba for 23 years. The statue was later moved to the grounds of the Collège universitaire de Saint-Boniface.

Accomplishments

Gaboury received an honorary degree from the University of Manitoba in 1987.[3] In 2010, he was made a Member of the Order of Canada.[4] This was followed in 2012 by being made a member of the Order of Manitoba.[5]



Books

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Chaput, Lucien (2007). ""Étienne-Joseph Gaboury"". In Boyens, Ingeborg. "The Encyclopedia of Manitoba". Great Plains Publications. p. 261-262. ISBN 1894283716.
  2. ↑ Pound, Richard W. (2005). 'Fitzhenry and Whiteside Book of Canadian Facts and Dates'. Fitzhenry and Whiteside.
  3. ↑ "Honorary Degree Recipients".
  4. ↑ "Order of Canada appointments".
  5. ↑ "Order of Manitoba grows stronger". Winnipeg Free Press. July 13, 2012.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Étienne Gaboury.