590 Main Street

More Information

The 1939 Singer Building is a rare example of Art Deco architecture in Winnipeg. Designed by Northwood and Chivers Architects in 1939, it is a very restrained example of this modern, streamlined style that preferred symmetry, clean massing, rich materials, and stylised geometric or ancient motifs. Art Deco was often used for the design of high-rises, theatres, banks, and government buildings. A two-storey brick and reinforced concrete building with a facade of smooth-cut limestone and polished granite, the structure originally had two doors flanking a central storefront window. In the reconfigured storefront, there is little evidence of the elegant bronze window frames and a bronze flagpole mounting which once greeted visitors.

The building was built for the New York-based Singer Sewing Machine manufacturing company, which had occupied several premises on Main Street since 1880. The Singer Company remained at this location until well into the 1960s. Faint traces of the company name can be seen in the granite above the entry.