Fonds F-299 - Arthur Erickson fonds

Hunza Nepal to Jaipir Agra / Khajuraho Serengeti Murchiasa & Serengeti Afghanistan Benares Jaipur Ethiopia Expo '70 Home movie of Erickson family visit at Osler Avenue home Home movie of Erickson family visit with children and puppies playing together on patio Home movie of Erickson family visit with children playing on tricycle in driveway Home movie of poodle and puppy playing in Arthur Erickson's Garden Artistic film of a family and baby at rural beachfront property Artistic film of two women running and dancing through the grounds of a large house Artistic film of two women running and dancing through the grounds of a large house

Title and statement of responsibility area

Title proper

Arthur Erickson fonds

General material designation

  • Moving images
  • Records in electronic form (digitized)
  • Textual records
  • Sound recordings

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Other title information

Title statements of responsibility

Title notes

  • Source of title proper: Title based on the name of the fonds creator.

Level of description

Fonds

Reference code

F-299

Edition area

Edition statement

Edition statement of responsibility

Class of material specific details area

Statement of scale (cartographic)

Statement of projection (cartographic)

Statement of coordinates (cartographic)

Statement of scale (architectural)

Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)

Dates of creation area

Date(s)

  • [194-?] - 2019 (Creation)
    Creator
    Erickson, Arthur

Physical description area

Physical description

Analogue originals:
153 moving images (124 original, 29 copy) : videocassette, film reel
15 sound recordings : audiocassette, open reel
2 books
1 cm of textual records

Digitized copies:
58 moving images (1604.6 GB) : mkv (preservation copy), mp4 (access copy)

Publisher's series area

Title proper of publisher's series

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Archival description area

Name of creator

(14 June 1924 - 20 May 2009)

Biographical history

Arthur Charles Erickson was an award-winning Canadian architect and urban planner. He was born in Vancouver, BC on June 14th, 1924. Erickson gained formal training at McGill University, where he earned his Bachelor of Architecture in 1950. Throughout his career, Erickson designed private residences, city plazas, and buildings for governments, commercial enterprises, cultural centres, medical centres, universities, and colleges. His designs have been constructed or conceptually incorporated into buildings throughout the world, including in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, China, Japan, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates.

Erickson’s buildings are known for their integration with their surrounding natural and urban setting, as well as their dramatic use of light and space. His distinct architectural aesthetic is influenced by modernism, as well as his travels in Europe, East Asia, and the Middle East. Notable works designed by Erickson include the Filberg House in Comox, BC (1958), Simon Fraser University (1963-1969), the Expo 70 Canadian Pavilion in Osaka, Japan (1967), the University of Lethbridge (1968-1970), the Vancouver Museum of Anthropology (1971-1976), the Helmut Eppich House in West Vancouver, BC (1972-1973), Robson Square and the Vancouver Courthouse Complex (1973-1981), Roy Thompson Hall in Toronto, ON (1976-1982), the Napp Laboratories building in Cambridge, England (1978-1982), the Hugo Eppich House in West Vancouver, BC (1979-1985), California Plaza in Los Angeles, CA (1980-1989), the Canadian Chancery in Washington, DC (1981-1988), and the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, WA (1996-2002).

While working as an architect, Erickson founded the Erickson/Massey Architects firm with Geoffrey Massey in 1962, as well as the Arthur Erickson Architects firm in 1972. He met his life partner and design collaborator Francisco Kripacz in 1961, who was responsible for the interior design of many of Erickson's most well-known buildings. Erickson passed away in Vancouver, BC on May 20th, 2009, at the age of 84.

Custodial history

The records were in the custody and control of the Erickson family prior to their transfer to SFU Archives in 2021. A second accrual was transferred to SFU Archives in 2023.

Scope and content

Fonds consists of moving images, sound recordings, and textual records relating to Arthur Erickson, his achievements, his travels, and his friends and family. Moving images include documentaries; exhibitions; TV programs; Architectural Institute of America meetings; artistic films; and home movies documenting Erickson's travels and family life. Note that a number of the films are duplicates stored on different mediums (e.g. Betacam, U-matic, and VHS). Sound recordings include radio interviews, lecture series, news documentaries, movie soundtracks, and a soundtrack for the Architectural Institute of America awards ceremony. Textual records include two books and two pamphlets.

The fonds has been arranged by the archivist into seven series:

Travel films (series 1)
Audiovisual materials related to Arthur Erickson (series 2)
Published materials related to Arthur Erickson (series 3)
Memorial pamphlets (series 4)
Erickson family films (series 5)
Artistic films (series 6)
Sound recordings related to Arthur Erickson (series 7)

Notes area

Physical condition

Immediate source of acquisition

The Erickson family donated the records to SFU Archives in 2021. A second accrual was donated to SFU Archives in 2023.

Arrangement

The archivist arranged the fonds into seven series: (1) Travel films, (2) Audiovisual materials related to Arthur Erickson, (3) Published materials related to Arthur Erickson, (4) Memorial pamphlets, (5) Erickson family films, (6) Artistic films, and (7) Sound recordings related to Arthur Erickson.

Language of material

  • English
  • French
  • German
  • Japanese

Script of material

Language and script note

Two French language moving images are located in F-299-2-0-0-0-11 and F-299-2-0-0-0-65. One German and one Japanese language moving image are located in F-299-2-0-0-0-64 and F-299-2-0-0-0-40 respectively.

Location of originals

Availability of other formats

Several analogue motion picture and audio items within this fonds have not yet been digitized. Items on older physical media may not be accessible in their original format for preservation reasons; access will be provided through digitization of the original. Consult the reference archivist for more information.

The fonds includes 58 film reels that have been digitized. The analog originals have been retained, but the Archives will typically provide access only to the digital surrogates. Digitized materials may or may not be directly available from the associated description in SFU AtoM, depending on access or copyright restrictions. Some materials not directly available online may be delivered by off-line methods. Consult the reference archivist for more information about access to offline digital materials.

Restrictions on access

Access is open with some restrictions due to the preservation needs of older physical media formats. See the "availability of other formats" note for more information.

Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication

The fonds contains copyright-protected materials that fall into two main categories: (i) materials created by Erickson for which the Erickson family is the copyright holder; and (ii) material received or collected by Erickson for which copyrights are owned by third parties.

Materials created by Erickson are available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial license CC BY-NC.

For copyright-protected materials for which the donor did not own copyright, the Archives may make copies available for private study or research purposes under the fair dealing provisions of Canada's Copyright Act. Use for any other purpose may require the permission of the copyright owner. SFU Archives can assist researchers in attempting to identify copyright owners, but it is the user's responsibility to contact owners and secure any permissions.

Finding aids

Generated finding aid

Associated materials

For other records relating to Arthur Erickson, see: the Arthur Erickson fonds at McGill University Archives; the Arthur Erickson fonds at the Canadian Centre for Architecture; the Arthur Erickson fonds at the Canadian Architectural Archives; and the Arthur Erickson official website.

Accruals

Further accruals are expected.

Physical description

Analogue moving images include 61 film reels and 92 videocassettes.

Analogue sound records include 3 open reel audio tapes and 12 audiocassettes.

Alternative identifier(s)

Standard number area

Standard number

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Description record identifier

Institution identifier

Rules or conventions

RAD July 2008 edition.

Status

Published

Level of detail

Full

Dates of creation, revision and deletion

June 2022: arrangement and description of first accrual completed (Dayna Fleming). April 2023: arrangement and description of second accrual completed (Dayna Fleming).

Language of description

  • English

Script of description

Sources

Accession area

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Related places