Kevin Bridgman and Tyler Hall to present Werklund Centre at Zak World of Facades
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April 13, 2026
KPMB partner Kevin Bridgman and associate Tyler Hall will examine the design of the Werklund Centre’s façade at the first-ever Calgary edition of Zak World of Facades, happening on Thursday, April 16.
Designed by KPMB in collaboration with Hindle Architects and Tawaw Architecture Collective, the three-storey performing arts centre in downtown Calgary — currently under construction — will house a 1,000-seat theatre, a flexible studio theatre, and significant gathering space. It will offer Calgarians new ways to partake in the performing arts and engage with their community when completed in 2028. The Werklund Centre Transformation is led by the Calgary Municipal Land Corporation.
The design of the building, located adjacent to Olympic Plaza, stems from a fundamental question: how might a performing arts centre feel as open and inclusive as a park? Deep research and focused engagement led to the concept of a lodge as inspiration — a place of gathering and storytelling deeply connected to the natural world and Calgary’s cultural history.
Bridgman and Hall’s presentation, “Transparency, Hospitality and the City: Rethinking Cultural Front Doors,” will explore how the building’s façade responds to its landscape, climate, and Indigenous knowledge, touching on topics like the low window-to-wall ratio, layered shading strategies, and high-performance envelope assemblies. It will offer insights into how the project team has balanced cultural narratives, public interface, and technical sustainability when designing the largest arts-focused infrastructure project currently underway in Canada.
Zak World of Façades is a globally recognized conference series focusing on facade design and engineering. This is the first time the conference series has travelled to Calgary.
Event details
Event: Zak World of Facades Calgary
Presentation: Transparency, Hospitality and the City: Rethinking Cultural Front Doors
Date & Time: April 16, 10–10:30 AM
Location: The Westin Calgary, 320 4 Ave SW, Calgary, Alberta
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