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At Stackt Market in Toronto, a critical design team transforms ubiquitous materials into unique new designs. By Shannon Moore
THIS PAGE Stacklab’s intervention in the Stackt Market campus covered three main areas: the open-air Forme pavilion; upgrades to the beer hall with a lighting and plantbased installations; and outdoor benches throughout the marketplace, designed in collaboration with local outfit COFO. Photographers: Sean McBride (Pavilion) / Rajestha Julatum (Tyvek lighting and benches)
You’ve likely heard of it by now: the fashionable sea of jet-black shipping containers known as Stackt Market in downtown Toronto. The modular and ever-popular retail hub opened last April, offering a new kind of cultural experience for residents and visitors to the downtown core. From the get-go, the market was intended as a short-term installation, located on a (temporarily) unused plot of land, and slated for deconstruction in 2021. Despite its expiration date, though, the project continues to grow. Most recently, critical design group Stacklab unveiled a 5,000-sq.-ft. food and beverage pavilion, inspired by the impermanence and industrial nature of the surrounding site. “Our pavilion responds first to the goal of the overarching project: to transform an
existing, derelict site into a temporary cultural hub,” said Jeffrey Forrest, founder of Stacklab. “But, more importantly, it speaks broadly to the cultural potential of construction sites in the city of Toronto, transforming ubiquitous, anti-social materials into social ones.” At the core of the Forme Pavilion is a collection of widely available, recyclable and reusable construction materials, like scaffolding, ratchet straps and concrete ballasts. Reimagined in creative and accessible ways, the materials add personality and character to the pavilion’s design; while at the same time inspiring a lifespan beyond the project itself. The roof, for example — the pavilion’s most distinctive feature — was constructed around a skeleton using recycled (and reclaimable) plastic shrink-wrap and basic, long-lasting
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