A Farewell To Earnscliffe

I am finishing off my Earnscliffe series- as well as the Doors Open series today. This terrace is a nice spot for some shelter from a summer sun. Some of these details on the property and inside might be from Macdonald's time, but others have been more recent. Inside, the house is beautiful, with one of the rooms set aside- Macdonald died there, and it's largely still set up in the same way as in that time. Another detail inside that I liked was a portrait of a little girl above a comfortable bench on the second floor landing, with a view of the rooms below. Macdonald and his wife Agnes had a daughter, Mary, who had developmental and mobility issues, and Macdonald had the space set up for her so that she could see visitors arriving at the manor to come see her father.

Since Doors Open was in early June, the lilacs were still fresh on the trees at Earnscliffe. It was such a pleasure to visit the place, which has regularly been on the Doors Open circuit, but which I had never gotten to before.

Home Of A Prime Minister

Earnscliffe is quite a place to visit. While the work of the High Commission is done at the offices downtown, this is a peaceful place for the head of the British delegation and the family. Interior visits were allowed, though photography was confined to the exterior, but the exterior alone was well worth it.

This statue in the garden drew my attention.

As well as the view of the Ottawa River and Gatineau. It would have been different back in the day when Prime Minister Macdonald lived here. The city on the Quebec side was known as Hull for most of its existence, until amalgamation several years ago of three cities into one. The Macdonald-Cartier Bridge can be glimpsed at the left; I showed it to you the other day in the Rowing Club posts. 

Paying A Visit To Earnscliffe

Earnscliffe is a National Historic Site of Canada, as well as the residence of the British High Commissioner. Built between 1855 and 1857, it was also the home of our first Prime Minister, John A. Macdonald, for many years up to his death. It was a popular spot for Doors Open, and I'm finishing up the series from here with three days of posts.

The beautiful Victorian manor is built of local limestone, and stands on Sussex Drive overlooking the Ottawa River.

The gardens are particularly well kept.

Taking In Views Of The River

I have another look at one of the boat bays at the Ottawa Rowing Club today. The club is the oldest of its kind in the country, and the second largest, with over a thousand members. There are other rowing and boating clubs here in Ottawa and Gatineau, including downstream in the New Edinburgh-Rockcliffe area, and along the Rideau River at Mooney's Bay.

Across the river in Gatineau there's a harbour along the shore, and the greenspace you see is Jacques Cartier Park.

The multipurpose room on the second floor of the first building was open. There were various boats up in the rafters, as well as plaques, and a look down at boats on the lawn between this and the second boathouse. One of the staff on hand mentioned the place was being prepared for a wedding reception that evening. It's quite a lovely spot for such a purpose, with a great view.

Doors Open At The Rowing Club

The floating dock here at the Rowing Club is a long one, and offers a nice outlook on the Ottawa River.

Turning around, we have a view of the Macdonald-Cartier Bridge, which is the next bridge east of the Alexandria, taking King Edward Avenue into Gatineau.

And here we have a view of the club. There are two buildings here on the property, both which house long boats on the ground floor. The second floor in this building contains a multipurpose room, which I'll show you tomorrow, while the other building has gym facilities for members.

Here are two views of some of the boats in storage here. They're very slender. I'm much more used to canoes, but these are the sort of boats you see in the Olympics.

The Hound And The Ottawa River

One of my stops during Doors Open was at the Ottawa Rowing Club, nestled nicely along the Ottawa River. Gatineau can be seen on the other side, with the Alexandria Bridge spanning the river in the background. The club dates back to 1867, and was started by John A. Macdonald, yet another example of the way our first prime minister seemed to be following me around throughout the weekend.

As you can see, it was a very pleasant day on the water.

A number of people were out on the dock by the club, some in the water, others on the practice devices on the dock. The club has members and also has classes for those interested in learning to row, or upgrading their skills on the water. I have more from here over the next two days, but I thought I'd leave off today with this dog, who was here with his humans, but seemed to have more interest in his stick.

The Contrast In Architectural Styles

I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to the Delegation building. The architecture style is very different, and lets in so much light. The place was busy for Doors Open, but does offer regular open houses to the public, so if you're ever in the area, look them up online. This upper walkway on the west side gave me pause for a photo op.

Out the window on this side is a view of the Delegation's neighbour: the embassy for Saudi Arabia. The Delegation's east neighbour is the Lester Pearson Building, which I showed you some days ago.

And here is a view of the front entrance to that embassy. These two buildings, along with the nearby embassies of Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, have a distinctly Middle Eastern feel to them, and yet don't feel out of place alongside the more typical architecture of the area.

One last view of the Delegation; it was busier inside than it was along the front terrace. I like the way the grass drops in stages.

Garden Views And First Nations Art

The Delegation building stretches out beyond the atrium, featuring conference rooms, a resource library, and office space, as well as private quarters for the Aga Khan when he's in Canada. While the Aga Khan is not strictly speaking a statesman, he has extensive contacts with heads of government. This courtyard garden is another element of the design of the property; it's well cared for and quite peaceful.

Taken from a walkway above the central atrium, this gives a closeup of one of the screens hanging from above.

Close by is the only artistic display on the premises. This is a headpiece by First Nations artist Bill Reid, one of the same figures incorporated into his Spirit Of Haida Gwaii.

By the way, a quick note to those I follow on Facebook. That site seems to find it hilarious to suspend me for a month for a comment that didn`t violate their code of conduct, while letting white supremacists, bigots, and people committing slander get away with saying whatever they want. Needless to say, I'm not impressed with Zuckerberg and his precious social networking site at the moment.

Mixing Together The Shadow And Light

One of my other stops during Doors Open weekend was the Delegation for the Ismaili Imamat. This is the headquarters for the Aga Khan Foundation's Canadian branch, designed by architect Fumihiko Maki. The foundation was established by the spiritual leader of the Ismaili branch of Islam, and works on humanitarian issues around the world with an emphasis on education. This is a relatively new building, having been opened in 2008.

The concept of the design lets in a lot of light into the central atrium particularly, creating fascinating shadow effects with the screens hanging around this area. These screens incorporate geometric designs and while they do bear weight, seem weightless. I have more from this place over the next two days.

Mercury Court And Its Architecture Firm

Another stop for Doors Open was Mercury Court in the Byward Market. The building was a department store back in the 1920s, and converted into new uses from 1989-1993. Retail and restaurants occupy the ground floor, while offices are on the upper floors. A statue of the Roman god Mercury (adapted from the Greek Hermes) stands up above it all. The Swedish embassy is inside, hence the flags and crest, but the place that was open for the occasion was an architecture firm, Barry Padolsky & Associates.

The firm is prestigious here in the city, well respected and well known, specializing in heritage preservation work. They've been in the news as of late; theirs has been one of the leading voices in opposition to a bone headed and garish monument the Tory government seems hellbent on erecting near the Supreme Court. Obviously I am in complete agreement with them.

I spoke extensively with one of the partners in the firm. She's been working as of late on a project not that far away from Mercury Court. The Rideau Centre's expansion meant the old Ogilvie Building was torn down, but part of that allowed for elements of the old facade to be incorporated into the new building. The brickwork and other details are presently being placed into the structure. Some of these pieces were on display here in the office space. 

This is a scale model of Mercury Court, which the firm worked on in restoring and adapting before moving in. The partner I spoke with talked about some of her previous work, which included the major work done on the Museum of Nature, as well as the complete restoration of a Victorian home gutted by fire east of the downtown core. This sort of work requires contacts with stonemasons and heritage carpenters who specialize in salvaging and saving heritage buildings. It's a very different take on architecture to me, and a welcome one.

One last view of the Court before going on to other things; it was an enlightening visit.