(Photo by Steve Frost)
Architect Bruce Kuwabara, co-founder of KPMB Architects, has received a University of Toronto honorary doctorate.
While Kuwabara has designed fine structures in Canada, he is also an accomplished city-builder, a valued campus-builder and a University of Toronto alum who has helped shape the university?s development and contributed to the success of the University of Toronto’s John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design.
For his architectural and design sensibility, and for his outstanding contributions to the university, Kuwabara received a Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, from U of T on June 20, 2024.
Born in Hamilton, Ontario, in 1949, Kuwabara earned a degree in architecture from U of T in 1972. After graduation, he joined the teaching studio of architect George Baird where he completed an apprenticeship. He then joined Barton Myers Associates, where he worked for 12 years. After Myers left in 1987, he handed over his practice in Toronto to Kuwabara, Marianne McKenna, Shirley Blumberg, and Thomas Payne. Together, they created the new firm KPMB.
Kuwabara’s work in Toronto includes cultural and academic institutions such as the Gardiner Museum, the Rotman School of Management, Canada?s National Ballet School and TIFF Bell Lightbox, in which he blends contemporary details with historical elements. His designs for Kitchener City Hall, Richmond City Hall and Vaughan City Hall have all won Governor General?s Medals in Archite...