Article source: StudioAC | Studio for Architecture & Collaboration
Located north of downtown Toronto, South Hill house near Casa Loma is a renovation, restoration, and addition to an older brick home. A sensitivity to the existing structure was observed when altering both the interior and exterior while the new addition stands in contrast with contemporary details, larger open spaces, and modernist massing.
While siting of the project was influenced by local zoning regulations, the new mass also yields to the existing house along the north elevation to celebrate the different periods of construction. While the new addition also utilizes a brick chosen to match that of the existing house and pay homage to the greater Toronto vernacular there is no mistaking what is new vs. old. Across the façade of the existing house as built openings were respected and referenced when conceiving interior layouts. On the addition expansive panoramic openings were used to bring in light and expand the perspective across the leafy tree filled neighbourhood.
The clients for this project live abroad, and sought a Canadian homestead an anchor for their large, young family. During summer and winter holidays, the parents wanted their children immersed in an Ontario landscape like the one in which they were raised.
To this end, they requested a “rustic, modern retreat” for their 100-acre property of forest, wetland, and meadows.
Situated on a steep waterfront lot flanked by suburban context, the Four & Four House knits together the client’s affinity for mid-century, post-and-beam construction with contemporary adaptations. The site’s generous width with its semi-naturalized condition presented an opportunity for landscape elements to organize the sequence of the house in the form of four distinct courtyards. Clad in locally-milled yellow cedar, four massive beams frame these spaces:
In the City of Brampton, about 45 minutes west of Toronto, the Springdale Library and Komagata Maru Park provides the suburban community with a new public library and community park. RDHA’s goal was to create an inclusive gathering place, a counterpoint to the otherwise flat suburban area, and a point of pride for the city.
When a young family of 3 found out they were soon going to be 4, they decided that it was time to look for a bigger home. They fell in love with the charm of a house on Montreal’s south shore designed by the architect Frank McGrath in 1981 but after 40 years of wear and tear, it was in need of a major renovation. They approached MRDK whose sensibility to detail and nostalgia would be a good fit for their renovation.
Located in the magnificent Quebec region of Estrie on the shores of the prestigious Lake Memphremagog, the residence is in the form of a slender volume. Clinging to the steep shores of the lake, it projects onto a peaceful bay.
A connector element
This 6,700 square foot residence takes up, through its layout, part of the footprint of the existing residence of yesteryear. The main axis of the residence, both interior and exterior, in addition to acting as a vertical circulation, also connects the garage to the residence by a roof structure serving as a carport. From the front door, then successively through the lobby, the stairwell and the swimming pool, our gaze is directed outside, towards the lake.
Located on Plaza Saint-Hubert, one of Montreal’s classic commercial strip, TUX’s new head offices reflect the dynamic and creative values of this marketing company. Two existing buildings were merged as one and, while TUX’s offices occupy a whole level, other uses have taken place in the building to create a mixed and diversified program.
The project’s program includes a cafe on the ground floor, directly connected to the plaza through the front facade. As you move past the cafe, a photo studio and a cafeteria then follow and open to the rear alleyway. On the second floor, a vast and opened workspace is bathed in abundant natural light coming from skylights and large windows. Then, a third floor has been added to the structure to house a family in a large residential penthouse.
In Toronto’s near suburbs, the sensitive redevelopment of low-density post WWII sprawl is a win-win opportunity whose time has come. Our residential condominium project is at the vanguard of this emerging phenomenon. The 2.5-hectare site ticks all the boxes- located along an underutilized arterial road in a forward-looking suburban municipality that has developed new planning guidelines for urbanization. Proposed at 6.46FSI, the density of our project is a model for development that addresses the housing shortage while at the same time establishing an environmentally responsible benchmark for preserving open space.
After the acquisition of Montreal start-up ‘Smooch’, Zendesk sought to upgrade the offices for their new Canadian team. In early 2020, the design and planning of this 26,000 sq.ft. office were well underway when the global COVID pandemic came to turn the way we work in offices completely upside down. As offices around the world were shutting down and employees were working from home, Zendesk decided to cancel the build-out and reconsidering their approach to work, and the role of the office in the years to come.
Reimagining a post-covid office started by a companywide survey which made apparent that people found it easier to do focused work from home but that collaboration, interaction, sharing information and problem-solving were far better achieved in person. This triggered the search for a space half the size of the original office for the same headcount.
Edmonton’s Kathleen Andrews Transit Garage (KATG) is a municipal bus maintenance and storage facility designed to set new standards for an often-overlooked building type. Reconciling demanding technical requirements with simple and rigorous architecture, KATG elevates a conventionally utilitarian building and honours its important role within a growing, equitable, sustainable, and resilient contemporary city. Functional efficiency and high sustainability are matched by formal refinement, historic preservation, and public art, enriching both the lives of the people who work there and the wider community it serves.
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