Formally known as Low Tide Properties’ Great Northern Way Pavilion, this building is more commonly referred to as Nemesis GNW, named for its cafe tenant Nemesis Coffee. It’s a wild, crazy, unmistakable and unplaceable kind of architecture that just is not seen anywhere else in Vancouver. It is truly a one-of-a-kind building by Vancouver standards.
This bright crimson flower covered in shiny, curved metal panels designed by architecture firm Perkins&Will offers 2,110 sq. ft. of interior space which meets the coveted LEED Gold standard.
Perkins&Will sought to embrace a “biophilic” design for the exterior and interior of the Pavilion.
In an interview with Noms Magazine, Nemesis Coffee’s Head of Social Media Jamie Smith explained how the interior design was specifically designed to complement the organic exterior. While most buildings in the Vancouver area, as with most metropolitan cities worldwide, are slowly shifting towards a more glass-steel-concrete look, this Pavilion bucks the trend. Smith notes how Low Tide Properties probably wanted an organic shape among these new buildings popping up in False Creek Flats. While the interior has plenty of glass and mirrors, it’s still anchored in its appreciation of organic shapes and hues.
We put up these really incredibly delicate fabric fins to simulate and give you the feeling of being inside of a mushroom. It’s really interesting how, as the air comes into the room it’s almost like the room is breathing. And it just brings this building to life and adds some additional dimension like a living organism.
Jamie Smith, Head of Social Media, Nemesis Coffee.
The design, construction and subsequent interior design has earned Perkins&Will much critical praise for their innovative, original design.
In 2019, the Metal Construction Association awarded the GNW Pavilion its Chairman’s Award in both Overall Excellence and Commercial/Industrial categories. In 2021, Interior Design magazine awarded Perkins&Will the 2021 Best of Year Winner for Hospitality – Coffee Counter. Interior Design specifically lauded the eye-catching, unique design incorporating “10 petals of CNC-cut laminated timber clad in cherry-hued composite-aluminum shingles.”
This Nemesis Coffee outpost is featured in our guide to the Things to Do in False Creek Flats
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[…] Coffee has a few outposts dotted around Vancouver, this one is extra special. The cafe is housed in an architecturally-distinct and award-winning flower-shaped structure designed by architecture firm Perkins + Will with curvy lines and glossy red shingles on the […]