have tasked themselves with the ambition
of creating buildings that empower people
by serving as places of interaction and en-
gagement.
Having worked in Berlin and NewYork City,
and formerly employed as a professor in
architecture design, Lang began LWPAC in
1998. The firm focuses mainly on architec-
tural design, but is also involved in research
and development, and prototyping. The
firm has always used a multidisciplinary
approach to architecture, incorporating de-
sign, technology, materiality and sustain-
ability within the larger urban ecosystem.
Operating under the name Intelligent City,
Lang works on fabrication and real estate
development as well.
The firm’s first project involved a univer-
sity building in Chile. Completed in the
year 2000, this building won a number of
awards and was recognized on a global
scale, which gave LWPAC the attention
it needed to spring high from its humble
beginnings. The project’s success has also
fuelled the initiative to rethink urban hous-
ing and planning in Vancouver.
THE COMPLEXITIES OF
URBAN PLANNING
The urban environment is often associ-
ated with increasing density due to an
imbalance between sky high commercial
towers and low-rise sprawl. Cities draw
commercial corridors, which contribute to
clusters of towers and people living within
64 business elite canada
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