I don't know. I haven't been able to find out. It wouldn't surprise me if the wood had been rotting from poor detailing. There are very few pictures of it so maybe it no longer looked as good. It was in West Vancouver. But it was a masterpiece. The architect, Arthur Erickson, died shortly after it was torn down.
Ah... that's a shame, on both the architects death and the building. I have no way of describing my taste in architecture, but basically the open air/view elements, and the water incorporation are just amazing to me.
Money does not equal taste version 100,000,000.
A hundred million dollar house in the South Bay looks like a strip mall with landscaping in the style of McDonalds meets Best Western:http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object...0503248469.jpg
The McManus Galleries (within RIBA post) is quite good. I usually hate it when there's that much detail in a relatively smaller building, but it works without being over-wrought. http://www.details.com/style-advice/...photos#slide=1 Details.com has a slideshow featuring some new hotels. Some trash, but interesting none the less.
Would it be obnoxious of me to add photos of my own house? I've posted it in SF Cribs before, but I'll stick to exterior photos here. The house was built in 1972 and won an AIA award in '76; I think it's a good example of '70s "rustic modern" architecture (which admittedly is not universally loved). My wife and I bought the place several years ago from the original owners who had commissioned the design.