Dal Grauer Substation, 1954

• Constructed 1954
• Location 950 Burrard St., Vancouver, BC
• Architect Ned Pratt (Sharp & Thompson Berwick & Pratt)
• Artist B.C. Binning
• Use Utilities
• Designation
  Canada's Register of Historic Places
  Class A, Vancouver Heritage Register

Commissioned by Edward Albert ‘Dal’ Grauer, the then-chair of the B.C. Electric Company (BC Hydro), the Dal Grauer Substation was designed by Architect Ned Pratt, of Sharp & Thompson, Berwick, Pratt, in collaboration with renowned west coast artist B.C. Binning. Grauer wanted to create a facility to house electrical infrastructure for the Downtown Vancouver peninsula, yet contribute to the urban fabric as public art and a forward-looking showcase of modern technology. Pratt and Binning created a three-storey concrete structure with a street-facade of steel, Binning’s famous mosaic tile, and floor-to-ceiling glass, punctuated by primary-coloured interior panels, modern staircases, and the programmatic reveal of the functional electrical equipment. Viewed from Burrard Street, the building was designed with the art and architecture as one, said to resemble a three-dimensional canvas of a Piet Mondrian/ De Stijl painting. The building has since undergone upgrades and alterations, and today features site-specific public art works, intended to draw from the architecture itself, installed on the street-facade of the building.