Ronald Thom
{{Short description|Canadian architect}}
{{Infobox architect
|name = Ronald Thom
|image =
|caption =
|nationality = Canadian
|birth_date = May 15, 1923
|birth_place = Penticton, British Columbia, Canada
|death_date = October 29, 1986
|death_place = Toronto, Ontario
|alma_mater = Vancouver School of Art, Canada
|practice = Thom Partnership
|significant_buildings = Massey College and Trent University's riverside campus.
|significant_projects =
|significant_design =
|awards = OC
}}
Ronald James Thom, {{Post-nominals|country=CAN|OC}} (May 15, 1923 – October 29, 1986) was a Canadian architect. He is well known for two works: Massey College and Trent University's riverside campus.
Early years
He was born in Penticton, British Columbia, the son of James Thom and Elena Myrtle Fennel. Thom served as an aviator with the RCAF during World War II,{{Cite web |url=http://www.ronthomhouse4sale.com/ron-thom/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120718181211/http://www.ronthomhouse4sale.com/ron-thom/ |access-date=2014-02-13 |archive-date=2012-07-18 |title=Ron Thom | Ron Thom House 4 Sale }} returned and graduated from the Vancouver School of Art in 1947. He never went to architecture school but apprenticed at Thompson, Berwick & Pratt, where he quickly became recognized as an unusually gifted draughtsman and designer. and also designed notable houses in the Vancouver area, several of which won Massey Awards, the country's top award for architecture. In 1957, he became a registered architect at Thompson, Berwick and Pratt and a partner shortly afterward.
Professional practice
He established R.J. Thom & Associates in Toronto in 1963 and later the Thom Partnership. He was a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada. In 1980, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. He battled alcoholism throughout his life and was eventually forced out of the partnership by some younger partners. He died at his office in 1986 after a bout of heavy drinking. His ashes were taken back by his family and scattered off the Pacific Ocean at Lighthouse Park in West Vancouver.[http://www.ronthomhouse4sale.com/ron-thom/ Ron Thom] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129090401/http://www.ronthomhouse4sale.com/ron-thom/ |date=2014-11-29 }}. Ron Thom House 4 Sale. Retrieved on 2014-04-12.
He was the subject of a major retrospective exhibition in 2013 and 2014, "Ron Thom and the Allied Arts" featuring a collection of photographs, drawings, letters and furniture that he designed for his buildings. The exhibition was shown in British Columbia in 2013, at the Gardiner Museum in Toronto beginning in February 2014, and at the Beaverbrook Gallery, Fredericton in November 2014.Alex, Bozikovik, [https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/art-and-architecture/show-traces-thoms-resolve-to-create-buildings-both-quirky-and-humane/article16749132/ Show traces Thom’s resolve to create buildings both quirky and humane], Globe and Mail, February 7, 2014
Works
| class="wikitable sortable" style="margin:1em auto;" |
| style="background:lightblue;"
!width=28%|Building !width=8%|Year Completed !width=20%|Architect !width=10%|Style !width=32%|Location !width=7%|Image |
| Master plan and buildings of Massey College
| 1963 | Ronald Thom | Modern architecture / Medieval Oxbridge College | University of Toronto Toronto, Ontario | 200px |
| Fraser Residence (Fraser House)
| 1968 (restoration completed by Altius Architecture in 2001) | Ronald Thom and Paul Merrick (Co-designer) | 4 Old George Place (Rosedale Ravine) Toronto, Ontario | | | | | |
| Catherine Parr Traill College Master plan and renovations of buildings; Champlain College, Lady Eaton College, the Bata Library and science complex on the Symons Campus
|1969–1973 |Ronald Thom |Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario File:Ron Thom, Trent University Student Centre 058-15.jpg File:Ron Thom - Trent University Bata Library 201-15.jpg | | | | |
| St. Jude's Cathedral (Iqaluit)
| 1970 | Ronald Thom | Iqaluit (destroyed 2005) | 200px |
| Fleming College
| 1973 | Ronald Thom | 200px |
| Pearson College of the Pacific
| 1977 | Ronald Thom & Barry Vance Downs | |
| College Education Centre
| 1982 | Ronald Thom | Nipissing University, Nipissing, Ontario | |
| Toronto Zoo – master plan and pavilions (including African and Indo-Malaysian Pavilions)
| 1974 | Ronald Thom with Craig & Boake and Clifford & Laurie | Metropolitan Toronto Zoo, Toronto, Ontario | |
| Atria North office complex (Phase I), North York
| 1978–80 | Ronald Thom | 2255 Sheppard Avenue East, Toronto, Ontario | 200px |
| New Shaw Festival Theatre
| 1973 | Ronald Thom | 10 Queen's Parade, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario | |
| Oakville Centre for the Performing Arts
| 1977 | Ronald Thom | 130 Navy Street, Oakville, Ontario | 200px |
| The Westin Prince Hotel, Toronto
| 1975 | Ronald Thom | 900 York Mills Road, Toronto, Ontario | |
| Toronto Metropolitan University Architecture Building
| 1979–1981 | Ronald Thom | Toronto Metropolitan University 325 Church Street Toronto, Ontario | |
Honours and Awards<ref>[http://caa.ucalgary.ca/biographies#T Biographies | Canadian Architectural Archives | University of Calgary]. Caa.ucalgary.ca. Retrieved on 2014-04-12.</ref>
- Fellow, Royal Architectural Institute of Canada
- Member, Royal Canadian Academy of Arts (1973)
- Member, Ontario Association of Architects
- Member, Architectural Institute of British Columbia
- Member, Quebec Association of Architects (1966–1969)
- Honorary Doctorate of Law (LL.D) Trent University 1971
- Honorary Doctorate of Engineering Trent University 1973
- Winner of Design Competition for Massey College, University of Toronto
- Citations of Excellence in Architecture by International College and University Conference and Exposition, 1970
- Toronto Chapter Annual Design Award – 1970
- National Design Council Merit Awards 1971
- Canadian Housing Design Council Award 1971
- Canadian Architect Yearbook Award of Excellence 1974
Personal
Thom was married twice, first to Christine Helen Millard (1923) in 1943[http://www.trentu.ca/admin/library/archives/ztbiog.htm Ron Thom: Biography]. Trentu.ca (1964-06-24). Retrieved on 2014-04-12. and survived by second wife Molly (m. 1963), daughter Emma (a veterinarian) and son Adam Thom (himself an architect).[https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/art-and-architecture/show-traces-thoms-resolve-to-create-buildings-both-quirky-and-humane/article16749132/ Show traces Ron Thom’s resolve to create buildings both quirky and humane]. The Globe and Mail. Retrieved on 2014-04-12.
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category|Ron Thom}}
- {{cite encyclopedia |last=McMordie |first=Michael |title=Ronald James Thom |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia |date=4 March 2015 |publisher=Historica Canada |edition=online |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/ronald-james-thom}}
- [http://www.trentu.ca/admin/library/archives/zthome.htm Early photos and letters concerning the development of Trent University]
- [http://www.trentu.ca/admin/library/archives/Ron%20Thom%20at%20Trent.ppt Ron Thom Slide Show]
- [https://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/home-and-garden/architecture/walking-toronto-in-the-footsteps-of-ron-thom/article16604940/ Ron Thom's Toronto – Walking Tour], Globe and Mail, January 2014
- [http://www.ronthomexhibition.org/category/globe-and-mail List of Globe and Mail articles]
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thom, Ronald}}
Category:Canadian people of Swedish descent
Category:Officers of the Order of Canada
Category:People from Penticton
Category:Modernist architecture in Canada
Category:Emily Carr University of Art and Design alumni