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Firm Names | Office Locations | Architects / Engineers | Work Samples | Sources
Winnipeg saw a boom in modernist architecture beginning in the 1950s. Few architectural firms could claim to have had a greater impact on this development than Green Blankstein Russell (GBR). From civil to religious, educational to industrial, their influence continues to be felt throughout the city.
Founded in March 1932 by Lawrence John “Laurie” Green, Cecil Nathan Blankstein, Gordon Leslie Russell, and Ralph Carl Ham as Green, Blankstein, Russell and Associates, the firm would work steadily in the first two decades of its existence. However, it was not until after the Second World War that it would begin to develop its own modernist style and begin to truly make a mark on the city. After a number of low-cost housing proposals for the municipal government failed to receive funding, the firm put the experience and knowledge they developed into the Wildwood Park neighborhood in the city’s south.
The 1950s had the firm develop churches, commercial spaces, and office buildings. However, its biggest impact on the city was to come in the following decade. The renewal of the city’s downtown began with the new City Hall complex in 1964. By the end of the decade this urban development project included the Centennial Concert Hall and the Museum of Man and Nature and the Planetarium directly across from City Hall. The modernist style of the Fort Garry campus of the University of Manitoba would be heavily influenced by the firm. The aesthetic brought to the campus by GBR and other local firms would come to be called University of Manitoba Modern.
The firm would continue to develop projects in various sectors throughout the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. This includes the Asper Jewish Community Campus (1997) that currently houses most of the city’s Jewish organizations. From the early 1980s to early 1990s, it was affiliated with the Ontario firm of Baldwin Herst Petersmeyer Architects. In 2004, GBR was acquired by the Edmonton-based Stantec group of companies.
Archival collections at the Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada that highlight the work of GBR includes the Cecil Blankstein fonds, which include photographs and drawings of the firm’s work as well as newspaper clippings, newsletters, and correspondence.
Period
Firm Name
1932-1934
Green Blankstein and Russell
1934-1945
Green Blankstein Russell and Ham
1945-1947
Green Blankstein and Russell
1947-1971
Green Blankstein Russell and Associates
1971-1992
GBR Associates Architects Engineers
Period
Office Location (Winnipeg)
c1940
610-259 Portage Avenue (Paris Building)
c1950-1951
310-333 Portage Avenue (Time Building)
1951-1980
222 Osborne Street North
1980-1992
1314 Ellice Avenue
Architect / Engineer
Period
William Donald “Don” Baldwin (1925-2006)
?-1992
Cecil Nathan Blankstein (1908-1989)
1932-1978
Morley Blankstein (1924-2015)
1952-1956
Skapti Josef “Scotty” Borgford (1916-1984)
1952-1970
Bernard Brown (1931-2012)
1958-1973
Isadore “Issie” Coop (1926-2003)
1953-1956
James J. “Jack” Donner (c1924-1979)
1950-?
Charles Faurer (1907-1975)
?-?
Michael Giffin
1992-?
Lawrence John Green (1899-1969)
1932-1961
Marshall Ernest Haid (1937-2012)
?-1965
Ralph Carl Ham (1902-1942)
1934-1942
Max C. Herst (1926-2018)
1948-1992
Jacob “Jack” Hoogstraten (1908-1983)
1945-1957
Gerald Robert “Gerry” Kendall (1935-2018)
?-?
Hans Peter Langes (1925-2008)
1951-1963
Edward T. “Ted” LeBlond
?-?
Debby Slobinsky Lexier (1928-2020)
1950-?
Easton Irving Lexier (1926-2020)
1948-1993
William Richard MacDuff (1925-?)
1949-?
Arthur Ernest “Art” Martin
1982-?
Alexander Walter “Alex” Nitchuk (1907-1990)
early 1960s-?
Myron Pasaluko
?-?
John C. Petersmeyer
1969-2004
Arthur King Piercy (1916-1995)
c1950
Verne Reimer
?-?
Gordon Leslie Russell (1901-1977)
1932-?
Elwood Murray Simpson (1926-2009)
1951-?
Joshua Sumner (1906-1966)
c1950-1966
Ralph Lucas Thompson (1920-2011)
1947-?
David Frederick Thordarson (1926-2003)
1949-1990
Alexander “Al” Tomcej (1927-2015)
1950-1963
John Robert Davenall Turner (1937-1990)
1962-1967
Building
Location
Year
Status
Steiman Block (conversion to hotel)
541 Selkirk Avenue, Winnipeg
1933
Boyd Building (alterations)
384-392 Portage Avenue / 270 Edmonton Street, Winnipeg
1935
Park Theatre (renovation)
698 Osborne Street, Winnipeg
1936
Roxy Theatre (renovation)
291 Hamilton Street, Neepawa
1936
Leland Theatre / State Theatre (renovation)
572 Selkirk Avenue, Winnipeg
1938
Demolished (?)
409 avenue Taché, Winnipeg
1938
Demolished (2022)
Third Avenue East, Ste. Rose du Lac, Municipality of Ste. Rose
1938-1939
Curtis Apartments
111-113 Smith Street, Winnipeg
1939
Demolished (?)
146 Magnus Avenue, Winnipeg
1939-1940
Kelly House (renovation)
19 Carlton Street / 383 Assiniboine Avenue, Winnipeg
1941-1942
Demolished (1965)
87 Princess Street, Winnipeg
1945
Mall Medical Building
280 Memorial Boulevard, Winnipeg
1947
Demolished (2017)
810 Waterford Avenue, Winnipeg
1948
99 Birchdale Avenue, Winnipeg
1949
400 Augier Avenue, Winnipeg
1949
561 Wellington Crescent, Winnipeg
1949-1950
Elizabeth Dafoe Library
1951-1953
400 Augier Avenue, Winnipeg
1951
361 Kent Road, Winnipeg
1952
YMHA Community Centre
370 Hargrave Street, Winnipeg
1952
Demolished (?)
1011 Pembina Highway, Winnipeg
1953
Demolished (2022)
1075 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg
1954
Kent Road School (expansion)
361 Kent Road, Winnipeg
1955
St. Thomas Anglican Church (extension and parish offices)
1567 William Avenue West, Winnipeg
1957
Fifteenth Street NW, Portage la Prairie
1957-1958
Closed (1991)
168 Wilton Street, Winnipeg
1957-1958
1485 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg
1957-1959
Great West Life Building
80 Osborne Street, Winnipeg
c1958
Prendergast School
906 Cottonwood Road, Winnipeg
c1958
1015 Cottonwood Road, Winnipeg
1959
401 York Avenue, Winnipeg
1959-1960
Brandon College (Men's Residence, Dining Hall)
270 Eighteenth Street, Brandon
1960
Pace Cinema
Polo Park, Portage Avenue, Winnipeg
1962
St. Andrew's College
29 Dysart Road, Winnipeg
1963
Brockie-Donovan Funeral Home
332 Eighth Street, Brandon
1963-1964
510 Main Street, Winnipeg
1963-1964
Brandon Sun Building (renovations)
501 Rosser Avenue, Brandon
1964
Winnipeg International Airport
2000 Wellington Avenue, Winnipeg
1964
Demolished (?)
Willow Park Co-operative Housing Development
Dorset Street at Burrows Avenue, Winnipeg
1964-1965
847 St. Mary’s Road, Winnipeg
1964-1965
171 Princess Street, Winnipeg
1965
Demolished (2020)
National Trust Building
Portage Avenue at Garry Street, Winnipeg
1965
555 Main Street, Winnipeg
1965-1968
Allan Physics Building (expansion)
1966
Parker Chemistry Building (expansion)
1966
St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church
737 Bannerman Avenue, Winnipeg
1966
Deloraine High School (expansion and renovations)
Deloraine
c1967
Engineering Building (expansion)
1967
Duff Roblin Building, University of Manitoba
35 Chancellors Circle, Winnipeg
1967-1968
Deloraine Elementary School (expansion)
Deloraine
1968
Air Cargo Terminal
Winnipeg International Airport, Winnipeg
1968
Greenhouse Building
1969
National School Studios Headquarters
King Edward Street at Madison Avenue, Winnipeg
1969
190 Rupert Avenue, Winnipeg
1966-1970
Holy Family Nursing Home (expansion)
165 Aberdeen Avenue, Winnipeg
1970
Freshwater Institute
1970-1972
1 Morley Avenue, Winnipeg
?
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Blankstein House (131 Machray Avenue, Winnipeg)
GBR: Green Blankstein Russell and Associates, An Architectural Legacy by Jeffrey Thorsteinson and Brennan Smith, Winnipeg: Winnipeg Architecture Foundation, 2017.
“Building notes,” Winnipeg Tribune, 28 July 1934, page 19.
“Curtis Apartments, Winnipeg's newest block,” Winnipeg Tribune, 18 August 1939, page 6.
“Two-year dream nears reality,” Winnipeg Free Press, 4 March 1947, page 3.
[advertisement (office move to 222 Osborne Street North)], Winnipeg Free Press, 1 September 1951, page 19.
“Notice of tender [Brandon College, Men’s Residence, Dining Hall],” Winnipeg Free Press, 14 October 1960, page 54.
“Business world [Polo Park Theatre],” Winnipeg Tribune, 2 March 1962, page 73.
“200 can make home-history,” Winnipeg Free Press, 4 September 1964, page 9.
“Sod-turning for Co-op housing [Willow Park],” Winnipeg Free Press, 22 September 1964, page 25.
“Go ahead signal for Civic Centre,” Winnipeg Free Press, 28 October 1964, page 52.
[Photo caption - National Trust building], Winnipeg Free Press, 21 January 1965, page 20.
“Green Blankstein Russell Associates - Executive Appointments,” Winnipeg Free Press, 4 March 1966, page 19.
“University of Manitoba geared for growth,” Winnipeg Free Press, 19 April 1966, page 38.
“Tenders for additions to the Allan and Parker Buildings, the University of Manitoba,” Winnipeg Free Press, 4 June 1966, page 58.
“Tenders for additions and alterations to Deloraine High School,” Winnipeg Free Press, 6 September 1966, page 40.
“Tenders for Zoology-Psychology Building, the University of Manitoba,” Winnipeg Free Press, 29 April 1967, page 63.
“$2.8 million Engineering Wing for U of M,” Winnipeg Free Press, 15 April 1966, page 12.
“New St. Nicholas dedication Sunday,” Winnipeg Free Press, 9 July 1966, page 28.
“Zoology, Psychology get new building [Duff Roblin Building],” Winnipeg Free Press, 18 July 1967, page 10.
“U of M building opens soon [Engineering Building],” Winnipeg Free Press, 19 September 1967, page 4.
“Tender for Deloraine Elementary School,” Winnipeg Free Press, 21 October 1967, page 49.
“Air Canada [Air Cargo Terminal],” Winnipeg Free Press, 24 November 1967, page 45.
“Tenders for Greenhouse for the University of Manitoba,” Winnipeg Free Press, 12 August 1968, page 22.
“National School to build new plant,” Winnipeg Free Press, 30 October 1968, page 60.
“Tenders for Holy Family Nursing Home,” Winnipeg Free Press, 13 May 1969, page 40.
“Fresh Water Institute [Fresh Water Institute, Fisheries Research Board of Canada at the University of Manitoba campus],” Winnipeg Free Press, 11 August 1970, page 37.
“GBR Associates Architects Engineers,” Winnipeg Free Press, 5 September 1980, page 42.
“GBR Associates Architects Engineers [Arthur E. Martin],” Winnipeg Free Press, 25 June 1982, page 73.
“Celebrating 60 years of design excellence 1932-1992,” Winnipeg Free Press, 12 September 1992, page 49.
Obituary [Arthur King Piercy], Winnipeg Free Press, 1 May 1995, page 13.
“Green, Blankstein, Russell and the construction of modern Winnipeg” by Andrew Morrison, Canadian Jewish Studies, Volume 31, pages 175-180, 2021.
“Mid-century masterpiece,” Winnipeg Free Press, 4 April 2022, page 12.
Henderson’s Winnipeg and Brandon Directories, Henderson Directories Limited, Peel’s Prairie Provinces, University of Alberta Libraries.
We thank Belle Jarniewski (Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada) and Jordan Makichuk for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Andrew Morrison, Gordon Goldsborough, and Nathan Kramer.
Page revised: 20 June 2024
