Name/Title
The Union Club of B.C. “The New Millennium”Entry/Object ID
2018.10.06Description
Print
This artist's reproduction print shows the Club on Gordon Street, a façade view from Humboldt, at the dawn of the new millennium in 2001. This building is the third clubhouse venue. Founded in 1879, the Union Club of British Columbia is a landmark institution in the heart of downtown Victoria., B.C., considered the foremost business, social and cultural club in the city.Artwork Details
Medium
Colour print on paperSubject Place
Region
Pacific NorthwestContinent
North AmericaContext
This Union Club building was recognized as nationally significant in 1995 by the joint federal, provincial and territorial administered registry, Canada’s Historic Places. And in 2017, The Union Club of British Columbia was declared a National Historic Site by the Government of Canada. The Union Club, completed in 1913, earned the prestigious status for its important early history and outstanding architecture of Beaux-Arts Italian Renaissance Revival Style.
Designed by noted San Francisco architect Loring P. Rixford (1870-1946), plans for the building were drawn up with the help of prominent Victoria architect Francis Mawson Rattenbury (1867-1935). Of note, in addition to the building's elegant design, is it's juxtaposition with The Empress Hotel (1908), a nationally significant
Château-style hotel, built for the Canadian Pacific Railway and the Belmont Building (1912), significant for its early use of concrete frame construction and as a gatepost to Victoria's commercial core. Together these buildings form a backdrop of historic places in the northeast corner of the Inner Harbour, and mark the entrance to Victoria's Old Town District.
In 2017, an extensive $4 million five-year building renovation project was completed, including exterior restoration. The restoration of the exterior terracotta was documented and the photographs now form part of the Club's collection. See 2018.06.01 - 2018.06.15.Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
Peter James RobertsonRole
ArtistArtist
UnknownRole
PrintmakerDate made
2001Time Period
21st CenturyNotes
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Born in Dundee, Scotland, Peter James Robertson has been a freelance gouache painter in Victoria, B.C. since 1989, specializing in landmark and tourism images. He moved with his family to Saskatchewan at age four. After high school he attended art college for two years in Edmonton, Alberta to study advertising art. Robertson’s professional art career began in neon sign design, working in various corporate art departments throughout Western Canada.
Robertson developed strong, innovative techniques with gouache and airbrush that he first explored in architectural illustrations. In the 1990s, Robertson painted commissioned portraits then began focusing on the painting of realistic landmark images such as The Empress Hotel, BC Superferries, the BC Legislature, and the Butchart Gardens. He also ventures into surrealistic images including black pen and ink collages. He teaches private and class art sessions and has been a featured painter at the Victoria 'Moss Street Paint-In'.Edition
Edition
The Union Club of B.C.Edition Size
225Edition Number
1Inscription/Signature/Marks
Type
Signature, Date, Inscription, LabelLocation
Signed and dated lower right in print: PETER ROBERTSON 2001©Transcription
Lower left in pencil: 1/225
Lower centre in pencil: "The Union Club of B.C."
Lower right in pencil: Peter Robertson
Label verso frame?Dimensions
Dimension Description
Visible imageHeight
40.6 cmWidth
58.4 cmRelationships
Related Entries
Notes
By Peter James Robertson:
2018.10.05 The Union Club of B.C. The New Millennium (40/225)
2018.10.06 The Union Club of B.C. The New Millennium (1/225)
2023.04.15 The Union Club of B.C. The New Millennium (43/225)