The $351-million Canadian Museum for Human Rights, with nearly indescribable shapes nicknamed Mountain (main building), Cloud (entrance facade glazing), Tower of Hope (spire) and Roots (splayed legs), had all the usual challenges of asymmetrical and nonrepetitive architecture. To overcome them, the team relied heavily on shared 3D reference models that provided x,y,z coordinates to help locate the giant puzzle pieces. "The building's irregular and nonrepetitive shape did not allow for the use of typical, repetitive construction techniques," said one judge. "As a result, very detailed coordination and meticulous planning had to be implemented at every step." Another said, "Wonderful basis of design, stunning execution." Taming the wild architecture-especially with many subcontractors inexperienced with this type of project and unfamiliar with building information modeling-stands as the most difficult dimension of the job. But the most novel aspect of the Government of Canada project was not about the irregular form; rather, it was related to the museum's compelling subject matter: human rights.
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