Known as the “concrete poet”, visionary Canadian architect Arthur Erickson is responsible for some of the most impressive buildings in Vancouver: the Museum of Anthropology, SFU’s Burnaby Mountain Campus, the Provincial Law Courts, Robson Square, as well as private homes. Directors Ryan Mah and Danny Berish captured a comprehensive account of Erickson’s life and work in their documentary ARTHUR ERICKSON: BEAUTY BETWEEN THE LINES. The film opened the 2024 edition of The Architecture & Design Film Festival (ADFF) in Vancouver in a sold-out screening.
One of Canada’s most remarkable architects, Erickson is renowned for his professional successes, yet little was known of the complex individual behind the creative genius. Between public achievements and private struggles, the documentary reveals untold stories through personal anecdotes, unseen archival footage, and a chronological voyage through Erickson’s architectural masterpieces.
Produced by Black Rhino Creative Inc., ARTHUR ERICKSON: BEAUTY BETWEEN THE LINES is a Knowledge Network Original production. It premiered on February 25th on Knowledge Network, where it can be viewed for free. Ahead of its debut on Knowledge Network, we chatted with the filmmakers to get an insight into the inspiration, process, and challenges of creating a documentary about a truly exceptional man.
How did this project come about? Was there a specific moment or event that sparked the idea of creating a documentary about Arthur Erickson?
Ryan’s uncle, Ray Mah, is the creative director for the Arthur Erickson foundation and when he told us about the centennial celebration of Arthur’s career we thought this was a good opportunity to tell his story in a more personal way than we had seen before. Our executive producer, Leah Mallen, recognized this opportunity and connected us with Knowledge Network and this began the journey of the film.
How did the collaboration between the two of you as co-directors shape the direction of the film?
Ryan and my style of filmmaking has always been centered around character-driven, intimate portraits of people. Our tastes and creative direction have always been aligned. We started Black Rhino Creative close to a decade ago and throughout that journey we have shaped every story together. It is often said that we share a brain, but that analogy concludes that we only have one brain between the two of us. I’m not sure if that’s a compliment but it does speak to how we create in shorthand and share the same principles and values.
How does getting an insight into Arthur Erickson’s personal life enhance our understanding of his work? How did you balance the personal and the professional?
Erickson’s architectural vision was deeply intertwined with his personal experiences, values, and worldview. His love for nature, his travels, and his philosophical reflections all informed his designs. His romantic relationship with furniture designer Francisco Kripacz was particularly interesting to us. Arthur’s career spanned across five decades and you can see how his style evolved from working with heavy and cold concrete materials to a warmer, softer and feminine palette working with Francisco. This relationship was at the heart of our story and you can see that collaboration in the Eppich II house. Understanding his struggles, as well as his successes, adds depth to our interpretation of his buildings and offers a more nuanced view of the legacy he left behind.
Still from ARTHUR ERICKSON: BEAUTY BETWEEN THE LINES.
How did you approach visually capturing Arthur Erickson’s architectural designs in the film? Did you face any specific challenges in translating his vision to the screen?
Arthur’s buildings have been captured, painted and photographed throughout the years. We had lots of references and wanted to approach it differently. In as many places as we could we wanted to reference the making / construction of the buildings rather than the building set in the present day. You can see this in the sequences of SFU and MOA. We even had access to an early film that Arthur filmed himself and narrated about the Filberg House. The film relies heavily on personal archival material and we wanted to stay within that motif. The challenge with relying on archival is that sometimes it doesn’t exist. This was the case for all of the Francisco segments in the film. Since Arthur rarely spoke about him publicly, there were no interviews on record we had access to. We did however have access to Arthur’s personal memoirs. This is where we used AI to generate Arthur’s voice to personify this relationship. Our story revolved so much around their relationship, simple text on screen from the memoirs could have been used but we chose to use AI for a deeper emotional impact.
The documentary features unprecedented access to the Erickson archives. Can you share the process of working with those archives and how it shaped the storytelling? Were there any particular moments or discoveries that stood out?
The biggest reason why we made this film is because we had access to the family archives. I would say there have been a few films made about Arthur Erickson over the years, and I think we live in a time now where a lot is public and shared. And so I think the Arthur Erickson Foundation really wanted the film to be a personal, intimate portrait.
While we were going through the archive, we were pulling photos with the help of Geoffrey Erickson, who is the family archivist. He mentioned that no one has ever looked or wanted to scan those particular family photos, everyone wants the nice glossy cover shots.
And so a lot of the archival that we’ve managed to pull, like eight millimeter films and all types of old photographs, had never been seen by the public before. This is when we discovered Arthur’s love for his partner, Francisco Kripacz. You can see the evolution of their relationship and how that impacted Arthur’s design practice throughout the years.
Still from ARTHUR ERICKSON: BEAUTY BETWEEN THE LINES.
What role do you believe films like these play in fostering a deeper public appreciation for architecture and design?
Many people talk extensively about how Arthur was a master of site, how he was able to incorporate a building into the landscape with delicate precision and harmony. As much as these buildings seemed to be in harmony with their landscape, they dramatically changed the context of their surroundings creating iconic cityscapes that have stood the test of time. This is very much apparent in Vancouver. Arthur was an artist and his canvas was our city. Arthur’s buildings do not only envision how people will experience the structure, but how that experience can extend to its surroundings, shaping our state of minds and the way we interact with each other. Understanding how architecture affects the entire cityscape as a whole as much as the building itself is the art of Arthur Erickson.
What do you hope audiences take away from this film?
Arthur shaped the city we live in and he should be remembered as one of the greatest architects of our time. In Canada we often do not celebrate ourselves as much as we should. It’s not in our humble nature. But this is to our detriment and why I believe Arthur isn’t as widely known as he should be. And I think what we want people to leave with is behind these magnificent buildings, homes, there was a person that led an incredible, complicated and remarkable life.
ARTHUR ERICKSON: BEAUTY BETWEEN THE LINES is now available for viewing on Knowledge Network.
