Background
He was born in Penticton, British Columbia, the son of James Thom and Elena Myrtle Fennel.
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Ronald Thom
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Education
Thom served as an aviator with the Royal Canadian Air Force during World World War II, 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 drawer and designer.
Career
He is one of the most admired Canadian designers of universities for his two masterpieces, Massey College and Trent University"s riverside campus. He was the primary designer of the British Columbia Electric Building (now known as The Electra) on Burrard Street, in Vancouver, British Columbia. In 1957, he became a registered architect at Thompson, Berwick and Pratt and a partner shortly afterward.
He established R.J. Thom & Associates in Toronto in 1963 and later the Thom Partership.
He was a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada. He had a lifelong battle with alcoholism 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.
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. Honours and
Achievements
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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 (Doctor of Laws) 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.
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Born
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Died
October 29, 1986 (aged 63)
Awards
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Officer of the Order of Canada Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is the second highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada.The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is the second highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada.