HISTORY

6000 years ago: Bison Roam

100 years ago: The Crag Cabin

9 years ago: The Vision

Bison Courtyard was first inspired by Holly Middleton, an artist who painted with Canada's famous Group of Seven. She believed buildings in Banff need a sense of adventure, because "people come to Banff National Park for adventure".

Another driving force behind Bison Courtyard is the shift in the Park over the last century. It was once an island of civilization in a sea of wilderness.

Now it is an oasis of nature in a sea of civilization. It is increasingly important to recreate, at a smaller scale, a sense of the Park's majesty: the biodiversity, the cycles of water, the awesome origami found in mountain faces.

Bison Courtyard is an initiative of Arctos & Bird, a company that holds a vision for heritage preservation, environmental protection, community values and architectural excellence.

The designers of the ground-breaking project are the well-known architecture firm, William McDonough + Partners of Charlottesville, Virginia. in association with Zeidler Partnership's Calgary office.