Dichroic Vancouver

This art project challenges the existing chromatics of downtown Vancouver. In a city known for architecture of greys, muted greens and blues, the resulting mass of construction can appear monolithic and somber at times, with only the occasional splash of colour. When these colours do occur, they seem almost jarring — too powerful and unresponsive to changes in light and weather. Dichroic Vancouver introduces a set of colour-changing bands of glass to the new Manulife Financial office building. Four delicate lines of dichroic glass are integrated into the southeast and southwest facades to bring nuances of shifting colour to viewers. The hues are affected by climatic and light modulations in the sky. Like weather and emotion, all is in a constant state of change.

“Colour is a power which directly influences the soul.”
— Wassily Kandisky, Concerning the Spiritual in Art

Viewers witness surprising and changing conditions of light and colour; a welcome addition to a sometimes-monochromatic city.