On a January evening some weeks ago, we made our way to Inform Interiors to celebrate the launch of updn: 88 Spins with Bill Pechet. We’ve had the opportunity to meet Bill a handful of times over the years, and it’s funny how, even after only a few short encounters, he somehow feels like a friend, or at least someone you’d be proud to call a friend. Such is the vibe of warmth and quiet good humour he radiates.
Leafing through 88 Spins, it felt unsurprising that I respond to his varied and numerous works of public art in much the same way. Many of Bill’s works have become like friends over the years, among my favourite moments in our city. The book offers a kind of random walk through his practice and process, and from one page to the next I found myself calling out to my partners: “Did you know Bill designed the Memorial Lights in Victory Square?” “That amazing Corten steel tube sculpture in Hinge Park — that’s Bill too. He calls it Ponte Bong.” “And remember the cut-out figures that used to hang above the entrance to Le Château downtown? Those were Bill’s as well.”
Ponte Bong, Hinge Park, Vancouver
In his conversation at Inform that evening with the book’s author and his longtime colleague at the UBC School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, Professor Leslie Van Duzer, Bill spoke about the importance of creating moments of surprise that counterbalance the homogeneity of Vancouver’s built environment. I couldn’t help but think: mission accomplished, if still ongoing.
GRANtable, May and Lorne Brown Park, Vancouver.
What distinguishes Bill’s work for me is its refusal to separate seriousness from delight. His projects can be monumental, but they are never heavy-handed. They can be humorous, but never glib. Again and again, his work reminds us that public space matters most when it invites curiosity, encounter, and a sharpened awareness of where we are.
That winter evening at Inform, we found ourselves in a room packed to overflowing with Bill’s colleagues, current and former students, fellow artists, and admirers, all gathered to celebrate the work of a lovely man with an enormous imagination — and the determination to build what only he, with the help of his many talented collaborators, could bring into the world.
You can find a more detailed review of 88 Spins in Canadian Architect.
— Toby Barratt, 2026-03-16
False Creek Energy Utility Stacks, Vancouver
Le Château, Vancouver, 1996–2016