National Post

It's a bit of a shock to come across the Confederation Centre of the Arts in downtown Charlottetown. There, among all the charming two-storey Victorian storefronts and the grand old 19th-century buildings such as Province House, squats the massive, blocky arts centre. Its Wallace sandstone walls form an imposing barrier as the centre turns its back on the older, more sedate architecture surrounding it. And to be sure, not much love is lost among many islanders when it comes to the arts centre. Upon its completion in 1964, people sneered, calling the building the "tomb'' and the "potato warehouse." Even today, some still snipe that it's that "God-awful looking building,'' according to Charlottetown historian Catherine Hennessey