Chippewa of the Thames First Nation Heritage Hub

2022

At this time of reconciliation and healing in Canada, the Heritage Hub project aims to protect and preserve Chippewa of Thames ways of knowing, while also improving access to cultural lifeways and increasing economic development for the local community. Through engagement, the community shared their traditions of mound building as well as affinity for the natural landscape, which inspired the form and siting of the structure embedded in the earth. The earth offers protection from cold Canadian climate. The Heritage Hub will serve four complementary functions: a cultural center, a governance building, guest accommodations and cultural grounds which include three fires that represent community, council, and demonstration. Cultural associations include traditional woodland patterning, the clan system and local constellation teachings including the concept of thirteen moons.

Categories

Cultural

Stage of Completion

Feasibility Study (JUL 2021- FEB 2022)

Location

Chippewa Of The Thames First Nation, Ontario, Canada

Client

Chippewa Of The Thames First Nation

Size

27,911 Sq.ft. 2,593 M2

Architect of Record

Tawaw Architecture Collective Inc.

Indigenous Design Architect

Tawaw Architecture Collective Inc.

Design Team

Wanda Dalla Costa (Principal), Claudio Vekstein, Tierra Miller, Dolores Cremonini, Quentin Miller

ECIC