text: The overall design is a study in contrast, a “play between human made marks on the landscape and natural forms,” says Donna Clare, architect and design lead of the RAM and principal at DIALOG. There are solid, linear blocks of stone, juxtaposed with curvilinear forms like the statement staircase. The designers played with scale, allowing visitors to experience things in different ways, and they incorporated plenty of design gems that make the gallery experience memorable, from hand-blown glass balls in the light fixtures with different colours, to graphics behind the scenes.
  They also kept details from the post office that used to occupy the space, including murals from artist Ernestine Tahedl. “We wanted to design it to be very specific to its place in the historic context of our city,” says Clare.