I don’t know about you, but when I hear the words “garden shed,” I don’t immediately picture a gorgeous, sleek and impossibly well-designed structure.

So I thought it was pretty great that for the Woodlands Community Garden Club in Vancouver, Brendan Collander Design and UBC architecture students so excellently thought “outside the shed” when designing this multifaceted and very attractive structure.

In this project, Collander collaborated with designers Jason Pielak and Stella Cheung-Boyland as well as institutional partners, CityStudio Vancouver and the city of Vancouver. It’s a testament to the power of co-creation and creative collaboration.

Besides its good looks, the Woodlands Community Garden Shed has a lot to offer. The garden’s focal point, the shed serves as a community gathering spot for education programs as well as a practical storage solution for the community garden.

The shed’s unique form extends beyond the aesthetic. Taking into account the angle of the sun for each season and for each time of day, the shed’s geometric design prevents shadows from falling on the garden plots yet provides shade for the central meeting place.

Using no chemicals in the construction materials, the team instead employed charred cedar to protect the wood. What I love is that this charred cedar surface also doubles as a chalkboard, inviting children and educators to write on the walls.

That beautiful herringbone lattice also has a purpose. It is used on the parts of the building that receive the most sunlight. As sunlight hits the lattice, it provides interesting natural lighting inside the shed. The designers also figured that during the summer months, vines could creep up the lattice to offer even more shade to keep the shed cool.

Learning about all of these beautiful, functional structures begs the question—why can’t all sheds be this handsome? Everything can be transformed in the hands of designers.

Photos Dave  Delnea.

via Arch Daily.