Photo installations across campus provide windows into university's past

2016 marks 50 years of the University of Calgary being part of this vibrant, energetic city and we have a great deal to celebrate. Led by the Eyes High vision, we’ve become the top-ranked young university in Canada and North America. Our physical spaces have changed a great deal over the years — this special anniversary project aspires to give casual passersby reason to pause and reflect at how familiar places on campus today once looked very different.

Did you know that Mac Hall once housed a bowling alley and a barber shop? And that Science A once boasted an inner courtyard with a fountain before it was filled in with labs? Or that that the Red Gym was once the Green Gym?

Whether it was because of space demands at a new and overcrowded university or because trends pass and student needs change over time, the physical environment on our campuses has transformed substantially over the past 50 some years.

David Monteyne, associate professor with the Faculty of Environmental Design (EVDS), has been part of the cross-campus 50th Anniversary advisory committee for over a year. As a scholar of architectural history, he wanted to find a way to bring the past to life for those on campus today. He was inspired by materials he had seen over the course of his career.

“I really wanted to give people an immersive experience in our history,” he says, “to provide them with a glimpse into the past that makes them feel connected across generations.”

Installations pair archival imagery with stories about campus locations

The result is the Then & Now project — a series of installations across campus that pairs compelling archival imagery with story snippets of what once happened in each selected location. There will be 21 installed this month on main campus, with two additional installations for the Foothills site and one planned for the downtown campus. Some of the large panels are affixed to walls using Plexiglas and others are applied to glass as decals.

Working with Rob Alexander, digitization specialist in Libraries and Cultural Resources, and historian Harry Sanders, Monteyne began exploring and selecting images from an archival collection that now numbers in the thousands.

“We chose images based on their location on campus as well as how representative they were of other eras,” says Monteyne. “This is about people just as much as it is about places — we wanted to prompt those walking by to stop and think. To create that sense of place, you need to present the historical context.” 

Images were also sourced from the Cumming School of Medicine, the Health Sciences Library, and the Calgary Stampede Archives.

Project teaches architecture student the workings of a large complex organization

Monteyne recruited Elizabeth Daniels, BFA ‘14, a Master of Architecture student, as his research assistant and project manager for the initiative. She happened to be in Barcelona at the time, completing a semester abroad as part of the faculty’s acclaimed Spain Program, when he asked her if she would be keen.

Daniels recalls that Monteyne said to her: “'All you’ll have to do is dig up some old photos.’" 

In fact, it became so much more — including a learning experience in how to get things done efficiently in a large, complex organization.

“These are things you don’t learn in the classroom,” says Daniels. “I was developing and presenting concepts, working with facilities specialists on space preparation (it’s not always simple in older buildings), negotiating with suppliers, and considering the implications of these displays being in place for quite a long time (which is why none of them have reference to a website on them).”

'We are respecting the legacy of those who came before us'

University of Calgary architect Jane Ferrabee applauds the effort. “It’s refreshing to see the original design aesthetic of campus being celebrated,” she says. “So much of it has been lost or hidden over the years. Through this project, we are respecting the legacy of those who came before us.”

Download a map (PDF) indicating where the installations are located on main campus.

Elizabeth Daniels hopes to focus on sustainable architecture in her future career, supporting social agencies and not-for-profit groups. She will cross the stage to receive her degree during convocation on June 7.