The Work of MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects

The Work of MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects highlights the achievements of the esteemed MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects, based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, with an international reputation. Known for producing a wide range of projects both in Canada and further afield, the firm works in a sophisticated modern vernacular idiom. They draw inspiration from a rich local heritage of building types, reinterpreting them according to the best practices of 21st-century architecture.

The firm is particularly recognized for their dignified and beautiful houses perched on the wild, rocky coasts of Nova Scotia. Overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, this remarkable body of work is based around a number of plan types that respond to the particular local climate: open to the sun but sheltered from the winds, and constructed using traditional materials that are allowed to weather. These dwellings embody the architects' profound engagement with their unique surroundings and material culture.

This monograph covers the complete work of MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects. Introductions by renowned architectural writers set the scene, while individual projects are illustrated through evocative photographs and detailed plans and drawings. What emerges is a celebration of an architecture that is both practical and deeply poetic.