At the beginning of powered flight, most airplanes required only a stretch of grassy plain 1,500 feet long for take-off and landing, and a converted barn served as both terminal and hangar. Only with the advent of a profitable commercial aviation industry in the late 1920s, some twenty-five years after Wilbur and Orville Wright’s historic flight, did the modern airport(...)
Hall cases
12 June 1990 to 16 September 1990
Airport Origins: Three Projects by Lloyd Wright
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At the beginning of powered flight, most airplanes required only a stretch of grassy plain 1,500 feet long for take-off and landing, and a converted barn served as both terminal and hangar. Only with the advent of a profitable commercial aviation industry in the late 1920s, some twenty-five years after Wilbur and Orville Wright’s historic flight, did the modern airport(...)
Hall cases
Between 1836 and 1848, the German-Dutch explorer Franz Wilhelm Junghuhn made several expeditions in Java in the service of the Dutch colonial authorities. He was among the first colonists to climb the island’s many volcanoes. His scientific works, books, maps, and lithographs made him the “Humboldt of Java.” This exhibition follows Junghuhn’s footsteps and explores(...)
Octagonal gallery
29 September 2016 to 22 January 2017
17 Volcanoes: Works by Franz Wilhelm Junghuhn, Armin Linke, and Bas Princen
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Between 1836 and 1848, the German-Dutch explorer Franz Wilhelm Junghuhn made several expeditions in Java in the service of the Dutch colonial authorities. He was among the first colonists to climb the island’s many volcanoes. His scientific works, books, maps, and lithographs made him the “Humboldt of Java.” This exhibition follows Junghuhn’s footsteps and explores(...)
Octagonal gallery
Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza travelled to Peru in 1995 with his usual baggage: only a few changes of clothes, some books of poetry, and a single sketchbook. This was the toolkit he used to interpret the voyage and integrate it into his architecture. More than half a century earlier, Peruvian photographer Martín Chambi had taken his famous series of portraits of the(...)
Octagonal gallery
26 January 2012 to 29 April 2012
Alturas de Machu Picchu: Martín Chambi – Álvaro Siza at work
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Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza travelled to Peru in 1995 with his usual baggage: only a few changes of clothes, some books of poetry, and a single sketchbook. This was the toolkit he used to interpret the voyage and integrate it into his architecture. More than half a century earlier, Peruvian photographer Martín Chambi had taken his famous series of portraits of the(...)
Octagonal gallery
As Building Director of Baden in southwest Germany, Friedrich Weinbrenner (1766–1826) had the unique opportunity to create in Karlsruhe—the capital and his native city—one of the most homogeneous architectural ensembles ever achieved by a single architect. The exhibition focuses on the impact of scientific and administrative reform on the urban and agricultural(...)
Main galleries
31 January 1990 to 18 March 1990
Friedrich Weinbrenner, Architect of Karlsruhe
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As Building Director of Baden in southwest Germany, Friedrich Weinbrenner (1766–1826) had the unique opportunity to create in Karlsruhe—the capital and his native city—one of the most homogeneous architectural ensembles ever achieved by a single architect. The exhibition focuses on the impact of scientific and administrative reform on the urban and agricultural(...)
Main galleries
Shaping the Great City explores the role of city-building throughout the Austro-Hungarian Empire, both before and after its dissolution, and expands architectural history by bringing to the fore a rich variety of modernisms. In the years surrounding World War I, these strains of modernism both reflected and shaped the many national and multinational identities of the(...)
Main galleries and hall cases
14 May 2000 to 15 October 2000
Shaping the Great City: Modern Architecture in Central Europe, 1890–1937
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Shaping the Great City explores the role of city-building throughout the Austro-Hungarian Empire, both before and after its dissolution, and expands architectural history by bringing to the fore a rich variety of modernisms. In the years surrounding World War I, these strains of modernism both reflected and shaped the many national and multinational identities of the(...)
Main galleries and hall cases
John Soane 1753-1837
Described by Henry James as “one of the most curious things in London,” Sir John Soane’s Museum was built as the picturesque and enigmatic home, office, collector’s trove, and personal showplace of one of history’s most innovative architects. This exhibition is a major re-evaluation of Soane’s career, as well as a reconsideration of his importance to the history of modern(...)
Main galleries
16 May 2001 to 3 September 2001
John Soane 1753-1837
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Described by Henry James as “one of the most curious things in London,” Sir John Soane’s Museum was built as the picturesque and enigmatic home, office, collector’s trove, and personal showplace of one of history’s most innovative architects. This exhibition is a major re-evaluation of Soane’s career, as well as a reconsideration of his importance to the history of modern(...)
Main galleries
Nuit Blanche 2025: 38%
It is time for a systemic change in the way we design and value the built environment. The way we build is not ecologically sustainable. The building industry is responsible for 38% of the worlds annual production of greenhouse gases. During the Nuit Blanche at the CCA, we invite you to come and discuss, reflect and be inspired by the actions of the German architecture(...)
Nuit Blanche 2025
1 March 2025 to 2 March 2025, 7pm to 1am
Nuit Blanche 2025: 38%
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It is time for a systemic change in the way we design and value the built environment. The way we build is not ecologically sustainable. The building industry is responsible for 38% of the worlds annual production of greenhouse gases. During the Nuit Blanche at the CCA, we invite you to come and discuss, reflect and be inspired by the actions of the German architecture(...)
Nuit Blanche 2025
This exhibition presents American architect Ben Nicholson’s search for order, meaning, and logic in a world of art, science, and mystery. The Laurentian Library in Florence, a masterwork by Michelangelo designed in 1524–25, contains fifteen pairs of terra cotta panels bearing complex geometric patterns that have been long hidden from view. Nicholson studied the panels at(...)
Octagonal gallery
11 December 1996 to 9 March 1997
Uncovering Geometry: Ben Nicholson at the Laurentian Library
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This exhibition presents American architect Ben Nicholson’s search for order, meaning, and logic in a world of art, science, and mystery. The Laurentian Library in Florence, a masterwork by Michelangelo designed in 1524–25, contains fifteen pairs of terra cotta panels bearing complex geometric patterns that have been long hidden from view. Nicholson studied the panels at(...)
Octagonal gallery
Meditations on Piero presents contemporary sculptures by British/Canadian artist Geoffrey Smedley alongside over thirty rare books from the fifteenth to the eighteenth centuries. The sculptures draw their inspiration from a series of drawings of the human head by the great Italian Renaissance artist Piero della Francesca. The exhibition relates these drawings and(...)
Octagonal gallery
2 May 2001 to 16 September 2001
Meditations on Piero
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Meditations on Piero presents contemporary sculptures by British/Canadian artist Geoffrey Smedley alongside over thirty rare books from the fifteenth to the eighteenth centuries. The sculptures draw their inspiration from a series of drawings of the human head by the great Italian Renaissance artist Piero della Francesca. The exhibition relates these drawings and(...)
Octagonal gallery
Talking Pictures
Sophie Dars and Carlo Menon, Stefano Graziani, and Yasufumi Nakamori present strategies for reimagining and employing visual formats such as the photo essay, the photo novel, and the photo exhibition. The event takes place in the framework of an ongoing CCA research project on the relationship between architecture and photography funded by The Andrew W. Mellon(...)
13 October 2016, 6pm
Talking Pictures
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Sophie Dars and Carlo Menon, Stefano Graziani, and Yasufumi Nakamori present strategies for reimagining and employing visual formats such as the photo essay, the photo novel, and the photo exhibition. The event takes place in the framework of an ongoing CCA research project on the relationship between architecture and photography funded by The Andrew W. Mellon(...)