CANADIAN INTERIORS
CDN $6.95 NOVEMBER DECEMBER 2016
Our Working Future +
November December 2016
Eye-catchers in Paris and Kortrijk
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Experience A Change In Your Workspace
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1330 Castlfield Ave | Toronto, ON | wstudio.ca | 416.929.9290 | info@wstudio.ca
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Luxury That Makes Perfect Cents
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11/122016 Features
39 “THE ERA OF ERAS IS OVER” The latest trend reports reveal there’s no
one-size-fits-all solution to workplace design, though with employee productivity, creativity and well-being at stake, getting it right is more important than ever. By Kristina Ljubanovic
49 IT’S AN ART Negotiating the sometimes precarious balance between interior design and fine art finishes. By Leslie C. Smith
54 CHARTING A PATH ARIDO’s latest ROI initiative helps foster creative pursuits for youth. By Leslie C. Smith
56 FROM MISSION TO MANDATE How two furniture companies established international presence and reached significant milestones in the development of their brand. By Shannon Moore
Regulars
17 CAUGHT OUR EYE €1 SEEN Highlights and insights from Maison & Objet in Paris, and Biennale Interieur in Kortrijk, Belgium. 34 GOODS Gift ideas. 59 SCENE 6€ OVER & OUT The 18th edition of the Red Bull Music Academy landed in Old Montreal for five weeks, and brought more than just the funk. COVER – ACDF Architecture renovated the former Place Viger hotel and train station in Montreal for the new global headquarters of Lightspeed. Photo by Adrien Williams
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Coming soon: Moment Factory MU Architecture designs modern and colourful new “creation studios” in an old Montreal brick factory for multimedia entertainment company Moment Factory.
Crew Offices and Café Located in an old Royal Bank space in Montreal, Henri Cleinge designed an office for a tech start-up that includes a café open to the public.
La Taule A new sports centre, designed by architectural firm Microclimat, embodies the vision of a former Olympic athlete and attempts to revitalize a small burg in the Eastern Townships.
Das Bier Humà design + architecture brings an industrial-style German “Bierhall” concept to the Rosemont neighbourhood of Montreal.
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November| December 2016 / V53 #6
Publisher
Martin Spreer
416-441-2085 x108 Editor
Peter Sobchak Art Director
Roy Gaiot
Assistant Editor:
Shannon Moore Associate Editors
David Lasker, Rhys Phillips, Leslie C. Smith ®
Contributors
Zephyr™ BLOCK ©2012 modularArts, Inc.
Enrico G. Cleva, Sara Viarengo Cleva, Kristina Ljubanovic Customer Service / Production
Laura Moffatt
416-441-2085 x104 U.S. Patent 8,375,665
Circulation Manager
circulation@canadianinteriors.com Senior Publisher
Tom Arkell
President of iQ Business Media Inc.
Alex Papanou
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Canadian Interiors magazine is published by iQ Business Media Inc. 101 Duncan Mill Road, Suite 302 Toronto ON M3B 1Z3 Telephone 416-441-2085 e-mail: info@canadianinteriors.com website: www.canadianinteriors.com Canadian Interiors publishes six issues, plus a source guide, per year. Printed in Canada. The content of this publication is the property of Canadian Interiors and cannot be reproduced without permission from the publisher. Subscription rates > Canada $38.95 per year; plastic wrapped $41.95 per year (plus taxes) U.S.A. $71.95 US per year, Overseas $98.95 US per year.
Apollo™ BLOCK ©2011 modularArts, Inc.
Weaver™ BLOCK ©2010 modularArts, Inc.
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Back issues > Back copies are available for $10 for delivery in Canada, $15 US for delivery in U.S.A. and $20 overseas. Please send payment to: Canadian Interiors, 101 Duncan Mill Road, Suite 302 Toronto ON M3B 1Z3 or order online www.canadianinteriors.com For subscription and back issues inquiries please call 416-441-2085 x104 e-mail: circulation@canadianinteriors.com, or go to our website at: www.canadianinteriors.com Canadian Interiors is indexed in the Canadian Magazine Index by Micromedia ProQuest Company, Toronto (www.micromedia.com) and National Archive Publishing Company, Ann Arbor, Michigan (www.napubco.com).
Member of Canadian Business Press Member of the Alliance for Audited Media
ISSN 1923-3329 (Online), ISSN 0008-3887 (Print) H.S.T. # 80456 2965 RT0001
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iQ Business Media Inc. Canada Post Sales Product Agreement No. 43096012 “We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund of the Department of Canadian Heritage”.
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From something negative comes something positive. 50% of the materials that go into our carpet tiles are recycled or bio-based, creating a more environmentally sustainable supply chain. By 2020, we plan to be at 90%. All to make the world a more beautiful place, inside and out. Join us in making a positive impact at interface.com.
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inside
Introducing the World Woven™ Collection Weaving global inspiration into positive change.
Canadian Interiors editor Peter Sobchak and publisher Martin Spreer flank Daniel Papanou, sales account manager.
Hope You’re WELL
I spend much of my time staring at pictures of sexy, exotic new office environments where it seems like the patron broke the bank on new amenities designed to wow employees, clients, and anyone else lucky enough to be invited in. I am of course lured into the thought process of “Wouldn’t it be cool to work in a place that gives me a pool table, popcorn machine, yoga studio, 3D printer….” and so on and so on. The answer is of course it would be cool! But the more important question is: will I be more engaged and therefore more productive? - - - - - - - - ---------------------------------------------------------Employee engagement is a serious bottom-line issue. When workers become disengaged, it costs companies time, money, and resources and undermines everything a company is supposed to do. This is why employee engagement is a key issues facing organizations today, and many are looking to interior design as a solution. But are expensive entertainment gimmicks the answer? Not really. As a growing pile of evidence from organizations like the World Green Building Council and the International WELL Building Institute (administrator of the pioneering WELL Building Standard Certification program) demonstrates, simple steps like improving air quality, increasing natural light and controlling sound can have dramatic impacts on the bottom line by improving employee productivity and reducing absenteeism, staff turnover and medical costs. - - - - ---------------------------------------------------------Companies like CBRE Limited have taken this to heart, and applied IWBI standards to their two new Toronto offices. For example, all employees have sit-stand workstations to reduce sedentary behavior, and the HVAC system creates internal air quality which is better than most homes. In more densely occupied areas, the system also automatically pumps in fresh air from outside when increased levels in carbon dioxide are detected (a well-ventilated office can double cognitive ability). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ---------------------------------------------------------Light, and electric light in particular, can have a very meaningful impact on the human sleep-wake cycle and natural circadian rhythms. One study found workers in offices with windows got 46 minutes more sleep a night than workers without them. As a result, no CBRE employee sits more than 25 feet from natural sunlight or views and the lighting system automatically adjusts to brighten or dim based on the natural sunlight level outside. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ---------------------------------------------------------In order to create acoustic comfort and cut down on background noise, which has been cited as a key cause of stress and distraction among office workers (and leads to 66 per cent drop in performance and concentration), the offices feature noise cancellation diodes that emit sound frequencies that contain the transmission of background noise. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ---------------------------------------------------------Other companies are beginning to pursue these efforts through design as well, because the results are clear – putting both health and well-being, and the environment, at the heart of buildings is a no brainer for businesses’ employees and the bottom line. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ----------------------------------------------------------•
Peter Sobchak
psobchak@canadianinteriors.com
WW860 Charcoal Tweed
Large and small squares, planks and skinny planks.
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To learn more visit interface.com
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VE RSAT I L I T Y & ST Y L E THAT PE R FOR MS The Aloft® luxury vinyl tile and plank collection offers upscale, on-trend designs and colors that work in residential and many light commercial spaces.
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caught our eye
Lose the Fat At first glance, it barely looks like furniture at all. But that’s how Beirut-based experimental product designer Tamara Barrage likes it, because she feels when it comes to obvious, ergonomic objects, “as they overperform, we underperform” and they “disappear behind their function.” Her colourful, heavy Dead Weight collection, seen at the Dubai Design Week satellite exhibit Destination at Downtown Design, encourages us to get more physically engaged with our furniture. www.tamarabarrage.com
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caught our eye
Photo by Boudewijn Bollmann (taken at Mu Artspace, Eindhoven)
Blowing Bubbles A vacant industrial space was transformed during Dutch Design Week by Jetske Visser and Michiel Martens with their Reflecting Holons: an on-going experimentation of light and movement made possible by long strips of oil-like transparent foil mounted on slow-moving motors. www.martens-visser.com
Right Angles The Monumental Chair, designed by Brooklyn-based Eray Carbajo, is surprisingly comfortable given its aggressive geometry. Inspired by crystalline elements found in nature, the chair’s durable handmade metal frame and seating make it suitable for both indoor and outdoor use. www.eraycarbajo.com
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Espress.0 Fully automatic espresso machines are nothing new. But fully connected? If you are yearning to orchestrate your next caffeinated beverage from your tablet, Saeco designed the GranBaristo Avanti with you in mind. Download the app, secure a connection via Bluetooth 4.0 and choose from 18 drink options (yes, the buttons on the machine still work, too). www.philips.com
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Sh Se Pr Fo ©
VARIDESK® IS THE HEIGHT-ADJUSTABLE STANDING DESK SOLUTION FOR ANY OFFICE SPACE. • Solutions for desktops, cubicles, or full-desk replacements • Special pricing for bulk orders available
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Order online or call 647-243-7951
Shipping charges may be added for shipping to remote locations within Canada. See shipping details at ca.varidesk.com/shipping-policy. Pricing and product availability are subject to change. Taxes will be added at time of payment. For patent and trademark information, visit ca.varidesk.com/patents. ©2016 VARIDESK®. All Rights Reserved.
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Workplace Studio
Inspire productivity. When it comes to planning a workspace, Staples Business Advantage™ works side by side with your business on every step, from creating a custom design to furniture and fixture installation. With cubicles and nesting tables, modular storage and beyond, our dedicated furniture experts bring you nationwide solutions from over 250 top manufacturers. Plus, with our unmatched buying power, you always get competitive pricing. So you can keep your team moving every day. Get started today. To receive a free design consultation with one of our expert planners, visit StaplesBusinessAdvantage.ca/WorkplaceStudio or call 1.877.272.212.
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Tiptoe Through Creativity
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Compiled by Peter Sobchak
There are few things as pretty as Paris in the early September. And since Paris does not shy away from an excess of inspiration, there is also Maison & Objet, which for five days doled out design muses in both subtle and blatant ways.
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Corkwirl | Gencork Designed by Digitalab, Corkwirl is a cork wall panel system whose pattern was “inspired by nature and biomimetic,” says the company. The twirl movement generates an organic, fluid pattern that is almost hypnotic. www.gencork.com
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seen Perching Stools | Artifort As the recipient of the show’s Designer of the Year award, London-based Ilse Crawford and her design studio, Studioilse, were given a blank canvas in the Designer’s Studio in Hall 8 to do with it what they wished. Her response was to turn it into a networking space decked out in plywood, corkboard, and items from her firm’s collection, including Perching Stools for Artifort: hand-stitched leather saddles over a simple wire frame. www.artifort.com Mini Houses | MADLab It’s both silly and refreshing to discover such simple objects that can bring so much joy. Madrid-based MADLab’s various assemblages of Mini Houses (by Mario Ruiz) and Winter and Summer Houses (by Héctor Serrano) are almost Zen-like in their minimalism, yet are able to evoke strong childhood associations of space building and exploration. www.mad-lab.com Dock | EMU Italian outdoor furniture makers EMU brought several novelties to the show, including Dock: a modular sofa system designed by Sebastian Herkner. Consisting of modular elements built on aluminium bases and backrests of various heights, the compositions can be easily re-assembled to create day beds, armchairs, sofas and loungers, all with overstuffed cushions covered with technical fabrics to withstand the elements. www.emu.it
Colander | Kristalia French designer Patrick Norguet continues his partnership with Italian brand Kristalia with the stackable Colander chair. It has a fixed yet light painted aluminium frame with an injectionmoulded polypropylene seat and back and a perforated texture reminiscent of a colander (hence its name). www.kristalia.it
Ebisu | Jun Yasumoto Jun Yasumoto re-interprets the humble soba chair with a contemporary profile in 100 per cent aluminum. Ebisu is lightweight, compact and comfortable, with interchangeable seats. www.junyasumoto.com
CANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
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seen Alphabet of Light | Bjarke Ingels Group First unveiled in Milan earlier this year, the modular Alphabet of Light by Danish heavyweights BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group) for Italian lighting brand Artemide captivated many a Parisian. The wall-mounted letters are formed from bent and straight elements of LED strip lights bound by magnets, and can be rearranged to form different letters. www.artemide.com
Collection | Zaha Hadid Design She will be remembered more for her revolutionary building designs, but the Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire also directed her design prowess to gift items and home accessories through an eponymous label. The 2016 Collection continues Hadid’s exploration of contrast, utilizing colour and materiality simultaneously, for example combining bone china and ceramic with modern resins and acrylics. www.zaha-hadid-design.com
Collar | Stelton Stelton’s Collar collection, by Italian design duo, Daniel Debiasi and Fredrico Sandri of Something design studio, should make all coffee feinschmeckers and fans of minimalism perk up, imbuing the classic design with a pure Scandinavian aesthetic. www.stelton.com
Olmo | Imperfettolab Imperfettolab is continuing its exploration of bringing natural deadfall into interior spaces. But not the real thing, of course: instead, items like Olmo (designed by Verter Turroni) are actually rendered in fibreglass and intended as bench seating. www.imperfettolab.com
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seen Nesting | Glas Italia Designed by Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec, these low square tables are made with extremely thick poured glass and cylindrical legs in blown glass, and thanks to complex manufacturing processes, the legs are completely embedded and welded into the top for full transparency. www.glasitalia.com
Nomade | Elodie Rampazzo Participating in the Now! le Off satellite exhibition held at Les Docks Cité de la Mode et du Design, Elodie Rampazzo exhibited her Nomade modular office desk. Highly customizable due to many moving parts, the desk still retains a sleek minimalism. This nice example of “less is more” won the young designer the Rado Star Prize France 2016 Prix Du Jury award. Matchbox | Nomess Copenhagen As the name suggests, Matchbox is inspired by the simple principle of its namesake, but translated into a series of storage boxes that both store and show ones precious belongings. The collection, designed by De intuïtiefabriek for Nomess Copenhagen, contains a jewellery case accompanied by smaller boxes that can be used to organize various small things. www.nomess.dk
Chair One | Magis Happy birthday, Magis! The Italian furniture heavyweight turned 40 this year, and held an intimate celebration in Paris at the Boutique du Centre Pompidou during Maison & Objet. To mark the occasion, Konstantin Grcic re-did his signature Chair One in a special edition blue colour, chosen by himself, and possibly as a gesture of thanks to the product and the company that really put him on the map. www.magisdesign.com
CANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
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noraplan® valua plank NATURE-INSPIRED DESIGN. BOUNDLESS POSSIBILITIES. Create an inviting, comfortable atmosphere with the nature-inspired texture and detail of noraplan® valua plank. A calming color palette brings the warmth of nature indoors while meeting the performance needs of your facility. Take a closer look. www.nora.com/us/valua
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Take it Slow
Terra This year, Biennale Interieur boasted five specially-designed bars/restaurants — one for every pavilion — that were the results of the winners from the Spaces Category from the Interieur Awards (which has itself been a part of the show since 1970). This edition of the Spaces Category has been focused on a bar/ restaurant design with a clear connection between design and food. For example, the Terra project, by Carolien Pasmans, Bram Aerts and Claudio Saccucci of TRANS Architectuur en Stedenbouw in Ghent, was a minimalist bar concept made with concrete blocks and a variety of mushrooms growing in a centrally placed field, symbolizing “our coming together around nature and food.”
Kortrijk swells every other October to accommodate the throngs of design aficionados – this year more than 70,000 of them from 50 countries – that descend upon the small Belgian town for a dash of pure design at Biennale Interieur. By Enrico G. Cleva & Sara Viarengo Cleva
The Biennale Interieur in Kortrijk is a curated design show with regional roots and European relevance. Many of the exhibitors are from Belgium and the Netherlands, but other regions like Denmark, Italy and Portugal are well-represented, touching many different backgrounds. It is a nice gem in the busy world’s design program of the fall season, and as the show CEO Jo Libeer said: “Unlike some other European massive design shows, where people are always running or on the telephone, it has to be visited slowly to appreciate the Biennale atmosphere and enjoy good design.” - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Alongside visitors from the trades, the public is mostly composed by design experts, enthusiasts and design students. One of the benefits of a curated show is that the plan, designed by Kersten Geers and David Van Severen of the Brussels-based architectural practice OFFICE, utilized different carpeting colours to organize the five pavilions in a continuous rational space — easy to walk without getting lost. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------•
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Mrs Rocha | Movecho Intended for sitting areas in exterior and interior public spaces, Mrs Rocha is available in a natural amber or a dark burned finishing, and made from pressed sheets of cork derived from off-cuts from the manufacture of wine bottle stoppers. Designers Alzir a Peixoto and Carlos Mendonça were inspired by maritime landscapes made of a free disposition of stones. www.movecho.pt 11/12 2016 CANADIAN INTERIORS
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Medousê & Gocce di Luce | Catellani & Smith Enzo Catellani has designed his first collection of outdoor lights, in response to the trend of living spaces moving onto terraces and gardens. Hand-shaped glass plays a starring role in this collection: Medousê is made of two overlapping glass hemispheres which is green when switched off and white when switched on; Gocce di luce (which means “drops of light”) is supported by oxidized copper rods, and seem to magically emerge from the surrounding landscape. They move and sway with each gust of wind and appear to become the fruits of a tree. www.catellanismith.com
Little Bird | Normann Copenhagen Little Bird is a range of irresistible decorative figures, designed by Jan Christian Delfs and turned in wood with the beak as the sole detail. There are six different sizes with tiny design-related variations giving each bird personality. Sold individually, the birds are available in pure oak or in lacquered colour. www.normann-copenhagen.com
CANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
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Modern | Orac Decor In this new collection, designed by Orio Tonini, Orac is interpreting modernism in angular and sharp lines, breaking traditions and conventions, and focusing more than ever on the symbiosis between architecture and decoration. Finding inspiration in the work of modernists such as Philip Johnson, Le Corbusier, Mies van der Rohe and Louis Kahn, and consisting of indirect lighting profiles, cornice mouldings, skirting, and 3D ornaments, the products are all made of advanced polymers ready to install and paint. www.oracdecor.com
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Musset 88 | Sammode Musset 88 is an exceptional interpretation of Sammode tube lighting, made by Normal Studio to celebrate Sammode’s 88th anniversary. It is a limited edition, in 88 numbered copies, of Sammode’s symbolic bright tube used mostly for industrial purposes. The designers substitute the traditional brilliant stainless steel finishing with a surface treatment that is ordinarily used in industry or military spatial applications. For a soft filtration of the light for domestic applications, stainless steel netting is integrated with a geometrical design. www.sammode.com
Bolon by You | Bolon Bolon by You is an innovative new interactive flooring concept that personalises Bolon’s product on a large scale. Using a variety of graphic tools, it lets the designer create whatever flooring suits the project. The collection features six patterns, four warp colours and 12 weft colours. By mixing these three elements in different combinations a vast selection of potential designs becomes available, for orders from 50 square metres. www.bolon.com
A’dammer | Pastoe If you come from Amsterdam you are called an A’dammer and you “do things differently.” You approach familiar things from a different angle. In that spirit, Pastoe put a new twist on its traditional A’dammer cabinet: the A’dammer Twist is a result of a 90 degrees tilt. Just like the people in Amsterdam, the A’dammer comes in many colours, even mixed, and is available in any duotone combination without additional expense. www.pastoe.com
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seen Mais plus que cela je ne peux pas / More than this, I am not able | Nemo Lighting “There are fewer suicides among porn stars than architects. Whose fault is it? Is it a decrease in performance? A lack of ideas? Imaginary suffocation from cultural anorexia? The real adventure is putting the matter under a dictatorship of mathematics to let it talk, why not question more, that bitch!” The essence of Rudy Ricciotti’s work defined in his debut lighting project is a brutal, non-conformist and radical reducer of a clear environmental imprint — a manifesto project against design and the drawing of objects. His lamp is a section of I beam, available in indoor and outdoor versions. www.nemolighting.com
Skye | Renson Skye is a new terrace covering fitted with rotatable and retractable aluminum blades in the roof, offering protection against the sun, rain and wind. Thanks to a smartphone app it is possible to remotely open and shut the roof blades. Skye can be assembled as a stand-alone, fixed against an external façade, built-in or integrated between walls, with all fixations, wiring and anchors concealed. It can be equipped with LED lighting in the columns or on the profiles, as well as a design beam with heating elements, integrated speakers, and can be customized in a multitude of colours and dimensions. www.renson.eu
Decapo-table | Mass-a Designed by Bert Masselus, this multi-functional indoor/ outdoor table is meant to integrate both a standing and sitting position, and can be used in an office for an informal meeting or even in a private residence. The structure is made in powder coated aluminum and stainless steel in two colours: black and white. The seats are in dry foam and acrylic upholstery, weather proof and stain free. www.mass-a.be
Pallone Paradise | Leolux Every few years, Leolux revitalizes the look of its Pallone classic. The new Paradise series, designed by Roy de Scheemaker in 1989, combines eight colour combinations inspired by birds with colours that are sometimes simple, sometimes extravagant. Artist Olaf Hajek painted eight of these birds – Yellow Chat, Flycatcher, Rosefinch and others – and Leolux based the new colour combinations on the paintings he made. www.leolux.com CANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
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Project: Omers Design: Ray Inc. (previously know as Raymond Chiappetta Associates Inc.)
Project: Royal Sun Alliance Design: HOK
Project: Metrolinx Design: Helen Moffett Associates Limited Photographer: Philip Castleton
Project: Sheppard Mullin Design: TPG Architecture Photographer: Chris Cooper
Svend Nielsen Ltd. is an established Designer/Manufacturer of the finest custom furniture and millwork. Drawing upon more than 65 years experience, we take great pride in crafting products that satisfy the most discerning eye. As a company we have a proven strength in working with designers and architects. We take your vision on paper and translate it into reality through a collaborative process in which our clients’ needs are seen as paramount. Over the years we have demonstrated our ability to handle the most demanding projects, executing contracts on time and in a professional manner.
Custom Furniture, Millwork and Public Seating 55 Penn Drive, Toronto, Canada, M9L 2A6 Tel: 416-749-0131 Fax: 416-749-0414 nielsen@svendnielsen.com www.svendnielsen.com
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M O S C AT O + B L A K E
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Visit our studio:
Garcia Rep Group 365 B Dupont Street Toronto, ON M5R1W2 416.882.1618 www.garciarepgroup.com
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Give the People What They Want Compiled by Peter Sobchak
‘Tis the season…for cool stuff! But not all stuff is created equal, so here is a collection of quality stuff that you can feel good about giving – or keeping for yourself.
Step Right Up! Italian product design powerhouse Alessi went under the Big Top and came out with more of its signature playfulness and wonder. The Circus collection, conceived by Dutch master Marcel Wanders, is inspired by classical circus iconography. Five of these objects are part of the Officina Alessi brand and each represents a particular circus character; they are produced in limited and numbered editions of 999 pieces and nine artist’s proofs. www.alessi.com/circus Get Your Green On Designed by Netherlands-based Protanium, the Ökovänlig (meaning “environmentally friendly”) e-bike comes with two plywood panels made of PEFC certified wood harvested in Germany, along with all other specially designed aluminum parts for the frame, to be assembled by the buyers themselves into the finished bike. The easy-to-remove lithium battery is integrated into the plywood sandwich construction. www.protanium.com
the goods
Tear the Roof Off The new Bowers & Wilkins 800 D3 loudspeaker is, according to the company, “the best performing, most advanced loudspeaker the brand has yet produced and is a fitting announcement on the eve of Bowers & Wilkins 50th anniversary; taking the company closer than ever to John Bowers’ stated goal of “losing the least” – it reveals layers of musical information from even familiar recordings that were simply unheard previously.” www.bowers-wilkins.com Back to the Future Give a rare art book by supporting the Kickstarter campaign to produce a facsimile of Fortunato Depero’s 1927 Futurist monograph, Depero Futurista (also known as “The Bolted Book” for the two metal bolts that fasten its pages together). Fortunato was a prominent member of the Italian Futurist modern art movement who lived in New York and designed everything from furnishings and textiles, to toy designs, magazine covers, and iconic packaging and advertising campaigns for brands like Campari. www.boltedbook.com
Wakey, Wakey! The new Philips Wake-up Light helps people to awaken more naturally, thanks to a unique combination of LED technology light and sound. Inspired by nature’s sunrise, the light gradually increases from 30 minutes before the set wake up time, and the entire unit is touch-sensitive, for that inevitable nine-minute snooze tap. www.philips.com About Face The Partime wristwatch, by Zürich-based Advision AG (trust the Swiss for horological devices!), has an unusual watch face: the right angle in the blue circle on the watch face horizontally tells the hours and vertically indicates the minutes. At noon and midnight, the blue totally disappears and then, just like an hour glass, the cycle restarts with a complete blue circle. www.partimewatch.com
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Light to the Touch Humanscale’s latest lighting solution brightens up any home office, bedroom or library. Designed by Peter Stathis and Michael McCoy, this sleek and colourful table light occupies minimal surface space and uses ThinFilm LEDs to cast a wide footprint of glare-free light. Its ball hinges allow for smooth flexibility. Fully dimmable from a touch button on the base, it even offers a nightlight setting. www.humanscale.com Mix ‘n Match Less-well-known in North America, Smeg is an Italian leader in electric household appliances, and recognized for good design: case in point is the BLF01 blender, which picked up a Red Dot award for high design quality. The design by Matteo Bazzicalupo and Raffaella Mangiarotti of Deepdesign clearly evokes a 1950s aesthetic of colour and shape while employing pure modern technology. www.smeg.com
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the goods
Screen Shots Sony’s new Portable Ultra Short Throw Projector is compact and cordless, so it can move with the user as they move through their home. Positioned flat against the wall or table, the projector produces a crisp 22” image and expands up to 80” in width. It also comes with a wireless unit that can transmit content from various devices (PC, Blu-Ray player, or cable boxes via HDMI). www.sony.com Drink Up A travel mug made of natural products and entirely by hand. What’s not to love? Tall, elegant and minimalist, made from stoneware with a semi-matte glaze in a contrasting accent of slate blue, and a natural cork lid. www.obviousobject.etsy.com
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Brew like a Pro Whatever your preference – single or double espresso, cappuccino or latte – the new De’Longhi Pump Espresso machine brews authentic barista-quality beverages just like you enjoy at your favorite coffeehouse. www.delonghi.com Secrets Within Codex Silenda is a five page book that features five intricate puzzles created by inventor Brady Whitney. Each page features a unique puzzle that requires the reader (or user?) to unlock the corresponding bolts in order to progress to the next page. Keep an eye on its Kickstarter campaign page to see when copies can be ordered. www.codexsilenda.com
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Get a Grip Through its research, Braun found that many use two hands to control their hand blender during food preparation, gripping harder as the blender uses more power. With this in mind, Braun built its new Multiquick Hand Blenders to give the user more control, featuring a new Smart Speed variable control inspired by German automotive engineering – the more you squeeze, the more power you get, making it easier to regulate speeds with just one hand. www.braunhousehold.com Better than Wine The perfect hostess gift – for all of the holiday parties you’ll be attending – Roostery’s Orphington Tea Towels offer a gift that can work with design and colour schemes of any sort, such as Gigumugu apple slices by gigini for Spoonflower, or Orange and blue by quinnanya for Spoonflower. www.roostery.com
Hang Tight Highwire is a hanging display system that puts a new spin on the idea of the picture frame. Designed by an Ontario College of Art and Design graduate, David Fleishman, it is not only functional, but a bold, aesthetic piece in itself. www.davidfleishmandesigns.com Precise Minimalism The Penxo pencil lead holder, designed by BitsFactory, won a Red Dot Best of the Best award due to its “fascinatingly clear beauty.” According to the jury “its design is based on the principles of gravity, using it to create a shape that is self-explanatory to the user. The classic pencil has been transported into the computer era in a highly convincing manner.” www.syitung.com
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A N E W AGE O F C H I C Inspired by timeless textile designs, we introduce the Open Archive Collection. This sweeping collection offers a modern twist on iconic styles. Informed by art, architecture and fashion, the Open Archive Collection elegantly updates classic looks, ushering in a new age of chic.
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The latest trend reports reveal there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to workplace design, though with employee productivity, creativity and well-being at stake, getting it right is more important than ever.
The eraof erass i over By Kristina Ljubanovic
In the BBC comedy series, W1A, newly minted “Head of Values” Ian Fletcher, played by Hugh Bonneville, roams the vast, nomadic space of the BBC’s New Broadcasting House in London, towing a fold-up bike and thinly-veiled frustration, seeking in vain anything resembling an office in the traditional sense (he ends up constructing one out of bankers boxes). The show is a brilliant send-up of office life in the 21st century, with its middling middle managers and action-itemless breakout sessions, but it’s also a bruising indictment of the design trends that promised more effective, collaborative workspaces. In W1A’s fictional reality, there’s a paucity of desks and an abundance of hay bales (and other weird places to sit). ----------------------------------------------------------Hapless, ineffectual employees play funny on screen, but in truth, a disengaged workforce is a liability. Workplace design can help boost productivity, creativity and worker well-being and you don’t need to be Apple or Google (or the BBC) to do it. According to the latest trend reports, it comes down to providing choice and opportunities for meaningful social interaction.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -----------------------------------------------------------
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The biggest shift might be in mindset — and metrics. Worker output is no longer the best measure for success, nor a building’s cost per “usable square feet,” but worker engagement, or “collisions per hour per acre,” as some forward-facing organizations are quantifying it, according to a 2014 report by Harvard Business Review. - - - - - - -------------------------------
The disengaged masses
Steelcase, in partnership with research firm Ipsos, takes a closer look at the correlation between worker engagement and workplace satisfaction in its 2016 study “Engagement and the Global Workplace.” Sampling 12,480 participants across 17 countries, the report finds that a third of global workers are disengaged and another third are neutral. Tellingly, those employees most satisfied with their work environment are also the most engaged (of the Canadians surveyed, 11 per cent fall into this enviable category, compared to a 13 per cent global average). The study concludes that workplace design can help, or hinder, worker engagement. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------Why does this matter? For one, salaries represent a significant cost to employers. According to a benchmarking report citing 2009 figures from the U.S. Department of Labor, 90.3 per cent of the cost per square foot of a corporate office space is spent on salary, the remainder going to rent or mortgage and energy costs. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------Absenteeism and its shady cousin “presenteeism,” which describes the phenomenon of employees who show up physically but clock-out mentally, displaying low productivity and engagement levels, translates into substantial losses for larger companies. One study, referenced in Interface’s 2015 “Human Spaces” report, estimates that presenteeism costs U.K. businesses £1 billion per year. - - - - - - - - ------------------------------“Disengaged workers are the largest group of employees in this study,” affirms Steelcase, “which implies that some organizations could be paying well over a third of their employees to come to work and undermine the efforts of the rest of the organization.” Investing in employee well-being and overall satisfaction can actually bolster a company’s bottom line. And the built environment, when considered and designed, can relieve common stressors and symptoms of disengagement. - - - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------CANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
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Photography by: James Brittain / courtesy of CBRE
A new 420,000-sq.-ft. ultra-high tech work environment spread over 16 floors is the new national headquarters for Deloitte in downtown Toronto and home to 4,000 staff (with room for expansion in the brand new 27-storey tower). As a starting point, Londonbased Arney Fender Katsalidis developed a podium at the tower base with a six-storey contiguous interior atrium. “The atrium is the social centre of the organization. By dropping in a sculptural stair connecting all floors, it fulfills several project requirements,” says Arney Fender Katsalidis Director of Interiors and Workplace Strategy, Matthew Kobylar. “It helps people to connect physically, but more importantly, the large nature of the landings encourages people to stop on or near the stairs for impromptu conversations with colleagues they’ve bumped into.”
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CBRE Limited opened a new Canadian headquarters and downtown Toronto office in October and through its design is aggressively pursuing a WELL Building Certification, a building standard that focus on the health and wellness of the people that work within. For example, all employees have sit-stand workstations to reduce sedentary behavior and incidents of back-pain; no employee sits more than 25 feet from natural sunlight or views; and the lighting system automatically adjusts to brighten or dim based on the natural sunlight level outside.
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Lightspeed is a burgeoning Montrealbased IT consultancy firm that despite its exponential growth still maintains the home-based business ethos of its early years. When the time came to adopt new office space, ACDF Architecture reinvigorated three floors of the historical Viger train station and hotel while maintaining the firm’s culture as a tight-knit, nimble collective. For example, the architects created three cabanas in the lobby as meeting spaces (which look like mini, stylized, high-gloss houses), with the peakedroof shape evoking the comforts of a traditional home. And as an added layer of cheek, the firm painted permanent “shadows” on the adjacent floor and walls outside the pavilions.
The new measure of things
If not cost per square foot of usable space, then what? How do you go about measuring, and designing for, the new productivity? Ramtin Attar, a senior research scientist at Autodesk Research, has an idea. A giant in the space of computeraided design tools and solutions, Autodesk is moving from its longstanding King Street West address in Toronto to a three-storey, 60,000-sq.-ft. showcase space in the MaRS Discovery District. - - - - - - ------------------------------The first phase of the move will commence in January 2017, but a full year in advance, Attar and team began a process of surveys and interviews to glean what was and wasn’t working in the current workspace. They supplemented that qualitative approach with a sensory tracking system, measuring quantitative building performance data including light levels, temperature, carbon dioxide levels and desk occupancy via motion sensors. - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------Attar assures that “good inputs lead to good outputs,” and likens the process to “eating your own dog food.” Unappetizing analogies aside, the collected data has effectively influenced the design of Autodesk’s new workspace, resulting in the creation of unique and diverse neighbourhoods with distributed amenities, “like Toronto itself,” said Attar. - - - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------Joseph White, director of workplace strategy, design and management at Herman Miller, calls this approach “measuring what matters,” referencing the name of the furniture manufacturer’s 2016 white paper on the topic. And while White acknowledges it is still “early days in the endeavour,” he does point to a general shift away from individual productivity (measured through cost per square foot per person) to an increased emphasis on group dynamics. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------The report, which analyzes and proffers insight from 120 floor plans of progressive organizations (all Herman Miller clients) across a variety of industries in different geographical regions, begins with the premise, originally posited by Peter Bacevice of New York City-based architecture firm HLW, that “alternative ways of thinking about and measuring the workplace may be more truthful reflections of the value of great design.” - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------CANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
Hamilton, Ont.-based dpai transformed the second floor of a three-storey commercial warehouse in Toronto’s King Street East nabe into a new office/studio space for kg&a, a busy PR firm. An informal lounge area dominates the flexible and collaborative work style space, where a touchdown station was paired with lockable file storage. A large custom pendant fixture by Toronto’s Lightmaker Studio was suspended over a modular custom sofa set upholstered in bright, eclectic fabrics.
4€
Photography by: Revelateur Studio / Adrien Williams / Ulysse Lemerise Bouchard
Multimedia studio Moment Factory relocated to the industrial area of Mile-Ex in Montreal, and enlisted MU Architecture to transform a brick factory into a 45,000-sq.-ft. “work and live” area on two floors. Weaving throughout the massive space is an artery of green in the form of real potted plants and fake grass laid down in interstitial “oasis” breakout and meeting spaces.
Nature calls
According to a 2015 study released by Interface, titled “Human Spaces: The Global Impact of Biophilic Design in the Workplace,” 47 per cent of workers report no natural light and 58 per cent no access to plants in the workplace, which makes biophilia, a concept popularized by biologist and naturalist E.O. Wilson in 1984, all the more relevant. More than trend, maybe closer to a movement (certainly to its proponents), biophilia supports the innate relationship between human beings and nature. For the design of work environments, that means potted plants and views, configuring space for greater degrees of openness and, if nothing else, the integration of reasonable facsimiles, which, remarkably, can stimulate some of the same positive effects. All this is critical for the health and well-being of both employees and businesses, says David Gerson, vice president of marketing at Interface, citing a University of Oregon study that found that quality of view was the primary predictor of absenteeism. At a time when companies “are interested in well-being but have no idea how to implement it” and human resources managers are looking to attract and retain talent, the relatively low-fi and actionable strategies proposed by biophilia are “music to their ears,” says Gerson.
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No one-size-fitsall trend
Herman Miller’s report concludes that the “metrics that matter — just like the workplace they measure — will be different for every organization... Designing a work environment that reflects and facilitates an organization’s unique goals, culture, and behaviors cannot be accomplished by replicating benchmarked ratios of meeting spaces per person or shared seats per mobile worker.” - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------That’s why Autodesk Research, whose 250 employees, mostly engineers and software developers requiring dedicated space for concentrated work, adopted a unique, computational approach for the design of its new workspace, based in the company’s specific goals and needs. “We really started questioning the notion that there’s a link between open offices and productivity,” says Attar. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------No trend, even those with cultivated mythologies such as that surrounding the open office, is sacrosanct. “Media and popular culture may create the perception that workplaces have changed dramatically in the past decade and that offices are open, informal and collaborative… the reality for employees around the world is that most people work in traditional office environments,” reminds the Steelcase report. - - - ------------------------------That traditional work styles persist and fixed technology dominates mobile is supported through Steelcase’s findings: 60 per cent of employees work in enclosed offices, 33 per cent in open spaces with assigned desks and just eight per cent are nomadic. 80 per cent of employers provide employees with a desktop computer, while 39 per cent use laptops. - - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------Even in 2014, Harvard Business Review (in “The Transparency Trap”) was predicting a pendulum swing back towards privacy, redefined, however, as information and stimulation control and “selective opacities” between teams to increase trust and experimentation within otherwise highly transparent organizations. - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------Cultural differences play a role too. Greater workplace satisfaction is evident amongst workers in emerging economies, with India reporting the highest levels of satisfaction, at 28 per cent (compared to the 13 per cent global average). The Steelcase report suggests that within India’s populous urban CANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
In January 2016, DIALOG’s Vancouver interior design team completed a new commercial office space for Edgar Development in the MNP Tower in Vancouver. Inspired from a simple photograph of a ‘mountainscape’, DIALOG designed the 4,285-sq.-ft. office to reflect a crisp, clean, mountain of ice to bring the outdoors in. A 40-foot backlit photo behind reception anchors the entire design, which includes angular 3Dfaceted meeting areas made from different tones of felt, made to resemble ‘cracks’ in the rock formations.
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Photography by: Ema Peter Photography / courtesy of C.Y. Lee Architect Inc.
C.Y. Lee Architect Inc. transformed a previously unoccupied 9,700-sq.-ft. space in a seven-story building into a modern office for software development firm TradeRev. The design goal was to integrate separate yet connected spaces, necessary for a business that includes heads-down work such as programming, and social work such as sales representatives . As such, a space-within-space motif encloses meeting and communal break environments within workstation space.
Teknion Studio rebrands as Studio TK to focus on “social applications to support today’s evolving workplaces” At NeoCon in Chicago earlier this summer, Teknion Studio announced that it had adopted Studio TK as its worldwide brand name. “The birth of Studio TK responds to the power of community and collaboration in the modern workplace,” said Charlie Bell, president of Studio TK. “Office culture has become increasingly vital to a healthy work environment as it guides the way employees work, communicate and engage with each other. This trend became the catalyst to rebrand with a mission to specifically address the needs of today’s social office. New collections will be designed to empower choice, foster connections and build community.” Studio TK offers contemporary office furniture to the corporate, hospitality and academic markets. With an exclusive focus on social applications, Studio TK introduced a number of new products to its Infinito, Cavu, Envita, Cover, Qui and Fractals collections at NeoCon. Influenced by the growing demand for social settings in the workplace, these collections offer residentially inspired products that help bridge the gap between taskdriven and culture-driven workspaces.
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Light and flexible, QuickStand Lite is a new addition to Humanscale’s sit/ stand family of products, offering an increased range of motion and a small desktop footprint. Suitable for collaborative and hot-desking environments as well as home offices, it is equipped with a new counterbalance mechanism that helps transition between postures; an adjustable keyboard and monitor arm platform that provides exceptional stability while typing; and can easily be affixed to existing workstations. www.Humanscale.com
centres, “the workplace can often feel like a haven from the congestion of everyday life.” ------------------------------Acknowledging this diversity and (fairly brilliantly) appropriating the language of natural selection, Herman Miller describes four “office landscape types,” progressing from the legacy model, with blocks of private offices along its periphery, to the fourth and final iteration, featuring greater numbers of group and workpoint spaces. In the Herman Miller-verse there is no single, correct formula for workplace design, just constant, gradual evolution. “The era of eras is over,” says Joseph White. - - - - - - - -------------------------------
An ecosystem of spaces
Cutting across cultural distinctions and trend reports are the strategies of increasing workspace diversity and the individual’s agency in controlling work experiences. According to the Steelcase study, the most engaged workers have the ability to choose where to work based on the task at hand, move about during the day and socialize with colleagues. Herman Miller calls this “purposeful variety” and suggests that standard (often over-sized and under-utilized) conference rooms transition to different types of meeting spaces, assigned seats give way to “shared workpoints” and privacyon-demand replace private offices as symbols of hierarchical structures. - - - - - - - - ------------------------------Professional services firm Deloitte’s new national headquarters in Toronto, designed by London-based architecture practice Arney Fender Katsalidis, is a product and test of these ideas. Boasting 18 different types of workspaces, across 16 floors, 420,000 square feet and connected by a six-storey interior atrium and feature stair, the workplace is envisioned as a “business tool to realize [Deloitte’s] aim of becoming the employer of choice across its myriad business units” and the ultimate flexible space fostering “creativity, innovation and productivity through inspiring common spaces and bespoke work areas,” according to a press release. - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------“Today’s workforce wants more choice and flexibility,” said regional managing partner Ryan Brain at the building’s official opening, attended by Toronto’s Mayor John Tory who commended the 158-year-old company’s willingness to embrace change. But change doesn’t come easy. Employees were asked to give up their old ways, consolidating at the downtown Toronto locaCANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
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tion and giving over 65 per cent of their floor plan to collaborative spaces. - - - - - - ------------------------------What they gained: cafés, a ground-floor bistro, on-demand offices and meeting rooms, standing and treadmill desks and a surfeit of options for private work, collaboration, hosting clients, socializing and personal wellness, at the price, maybe, of an overtly nomadic experience. The trade-off, according to Steelcase, is that “an ecosystem of spaces enables an organization to be more resilient. It uses real estate more efficiently and cost effectively, making it easier to… evolve the workplace over time.” - - - - -------------------------------
Social connection and collision
Several studies prioritize quality interactions through virtual and physical connections. Herman Miller recommends centralized plazas for broader, “fortuitous interactions” instead of isolated breakrooms that serve niche groups, and the transformation of circulation spaces to “connective spaces” to increase active mixing. Deloitte’s feature stair works in this way. Because of its central location and generous landings, it serves as both circulatory spine and gathering place. - - - - - - - - ------------------------------But the most forward-thinking organizations are expanding their reach to include
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“third spaces” within the urban fabric and opening their doors to like-minded organizations — and even the public — increasing opportunities for chance “collisions” that can lead to innovation. Harvard Business Review’s 2014 feature of Silicon Valley’s game-changers identifies this as the “new model for the corporate campus of the future that weaves together public and private spaces, employees and partners, living and working.” - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------Deloitte’s ground-floor bistro at the corner of Yonge and Adelaide streets was an attempt, according to the building’s press release, to “invigorate a neglected corner of the city and interact with the local population.” It fails to do so, remaining inaccessible to anyone without a Deloitte lanyard and sufficient security clearance. - - - - - - - ------------------------------Autodesk has aspirations to create a streetfacing showcase of its products and solutions; a host space that will feature public events, lectures and hackathons, similar to its San Francisco flagship. Whether they’ll succeed in weaving into the city fabric — or, at the very least, into the MaRS community of startups, multinationals, researchers and investors — remains to be seen. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------Barring a new season of W1A, we’ll be watching.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ------------------------------•
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& N N G
Photos by: Nelson Kon / Le Gremain Hotel
It’s an Art
By Leslie C. Smith
Negotiating the sometimes precarious balance between interior design and fine art finishes Some professions you choose; others choose you. For Olena Kassian, co-partner in Toronto’s BARKAS Productions, the impetus was her architectfather. From a very early age, her playthings were the pencils, watercolours and paper he’d leave lying around their Toronto home. The creative passion followed her through high school, a degree from the Ontario College of Art (now OCAD University) and fine art studies at the University of Guelph. For many years afterwards, she worked as a high-realism illustrator – until the rise of the internet kicked the props out from under that career. From then on, she worked at art for art’s sake, producing abstract portraits, metalwork, shadowboxes and, more recently, powdered-graphite-onMylar drawings. And then, in 2012, she met Ann Bartok.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Above A stunning tribute to our home and native land, this ceiling-situated flag at Canada House in Rio de Janeiro during the 2016 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games was made from coloured strips of drop-cloth, sourced from Canadian Tire. Designer Deborah Moss and her team at Etobicoke’s renowned Moss & Lam worked pro bono on this and other installations at Canada House because, in her own words: “The Olympics are beyond other projects.”
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Above The flag set the tone for Canada House’s Celebration Lounge, where broadcasters, athletes and guests gathered to cheer the nation’s Olympic successes. Right A spiraling mobile of red-and-white stencilled paddles led up from Canada House’s main lobby to the second floor. Due to timing and logistical constraints, Moss & Lam had to deal with a last-minute installation crisis, and drill in dozens of bolts through the flimsy Styrofoam ceiling into the concrete behind.
Bartok grew up in England, with art-supportive parents; however, it was a secondary-school art teacher (an all-but-vanished breed in today’s educational system) who spurred her on, not to mention got her into the Nottingham College of Fine Arts at the tender age of 15. Her professional work consisted mostly of 3D commercial graphics and sculptures both before and after she emigrated to Toronto in the Swinging Sixties. Her roster of Canadian commercial clients includes Cadillac Fairview, the Royal Ontario Museum, Parks Canada and the Hockey Hall of Fame. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------Four years ago, she connected with Kassian after the two were hired to repair another artist’s work in Brazil. “We had fun,” Kassian says, “and we worked well together.” So, at a time in their lives when most people retire, or at least slow down, the pair teamed up to form BARKAS. - - -------------------------------------------------Growing up in the picturesque Humber Valley, west of Toronto, Deborah Moss says she always knew she’d be an artist. Her brother was one; so too was her great-uncle. Artwork and books on art history imbued the family home, a place tastefully decorated by her mother, who inclined towards interior design. Although her father was a banker by day, he loved to whittle and carve in his off-hours, and he, too, encouraged his daughter’s own artistic direction. - - - - -------------------------------------------------The future co-founder (in 1989) of Etobicoke’s Moss & Lam studio studied practical and historical art in high school and at the University of Toronto. On the recommendation of a friend, Deborah then moved on to OCA. That friend, who ended up becoming both her personal and professional partner, was the brilliant Edward Lam, who died tragically in 2013, aged 54, of an unsuspected brain aneurysm. Deborah now manages her company’s new 13,000-sq-.ft. studio and 17 employees with the assistance of Jamie Stagnitta, director of operations and an CANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
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artist in his own right. Moss & Lam’s extensive client list includes several Four Seasons Hotels, the Lotte department store in Seoul, Hong Kong’s Dalloyau Restaurant, and New York’s W Hotel Times Square. -------------------------------------------------The company’s most recent project — producing ceiling installations for the Canada Olympic House in Rio de Janeiro for the 2016 Summer Games — came from the renowned Toronto-based design firm, Yabu Pushelberg. The job turned out to be unusual in more ways than one. It was pro bono, and it had crazy timelines that allowed only a handful of weeks to conceptualize, create, ship and install the pieces. “We were a bit shell-shocked,” Moss says, “but we thought ‘we have to do this.’” The clincher for her was that all materials had to be sourced at Canadian Tire, an Olympic sponsor. “We love Canadian Tire! We get a lot of our studio stuff there.” - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------The entire studio dedicated itself to working on the project, a threepart harmony consisting of a mobile of red-and-white painted paddles suspended in spirals over the main entrance lobby; a series of birchframe canoes scrimmed with translucent cloth and lit from within hanging above the lounge and dining area; and a fantastic deconstructed Canadian flag made from hundreds of strips of painted canvas cloth stretched across the ceiling of the Celebration Lounge broadcast venue. Despite intense timing issues and the distances involved, the entire project came off beautifully: “We had a very happy reaction from the sponsors, and the Canadian Olympic Committee was thrilled.” - - - - - -------------------------------------------------Special events like the Olympics aside, Moss has some words of wisdom in general for interior designers and artists trying to work together to achieve something great. Common pitfalls include tight budgets and due dates, lack of important details on such things as elevations and installation requirements, and diverging or unrealistic
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Above Ann Bartok and Olena Kassian of BARKAS Productions hand-made all 120 “Cloud 9” sculptures, which hang, featherlight, over the beds in Le Germain Hotel Toronto. “They wanted something elegant, beautiful and uplifting,” says Kassian. The client agrees that the pieces “elevate the contemporary atmosphere” of the newly refurbished hotel.
expectations from different stakeholders. Management styles, too, can come into play: “A creative person sometimes finds it hard to be micro-managed – told to use this colour, this shape or pattern. The most successful relationships have an openness to them, an openended dialogue. What’s the story? What ties this all together?” - - - -------------------------------------------------Then too, Moss says: “There’s a perception out there that what you do is not as valid as ‘real art’ that hangs in galleries, so sometimes the respect is not given to you.” Artists must therefore retain respect for themselves, and for their artistic process. “Know what you want to make and do,” Moss counsels. “Keep your head above water, and listen to your inner voice.” She adds, only partly in jest: “If you’ve broken even at the end of the project, you’ll have done well.” - - - - - -------------------------------------------------BARKAS Productions may be a relatively new entity on the design scene, but its co-partners have long, independent experience with many aspects of the commercial art market. Olena Kassian shares her and Ann Bartok’s ideas on how fine art can best mesh with interior design. “First, art should, whenever possible, be integrated into the planning and design stages, not as an afterthought. And there should be budget allocation at this point. Art is usually what the visitor sees first, and remembers last – it humanizes the space.”- - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------The artist’s responsibility to the client, she says, should be to work towards the client’s vision. “Sometimes our insights inform a project in such a way that it influences an alteration, for the better. In an ideal situation, all parties strive together to create a whole that is sometimes even greater than the initial intent.” - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------The intent of their most recent client, designer Louise Dupont of Montreal-based LEMAYMICHAUD Architecture and Design, was to upgrade Le Germain Hotel Toronto, to make the space both inviting CANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
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and contemporary. This was achieved through the creation of 120 sculptures in a series called Cloud 9, which anchor each room and elevate the hotel chain’s new contemporary atmosphere. Perhaps even more telling of the project’s success is the amount of photos posted on hotel visitors’ Instagram accounts. (Indeed, BARKAS has already received a commission from a new client, after she spotted the artwork online.) - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------The partners claim to be the only artists to use their special recycled material, made from bleached softwood fibre, in the same sculptural way. Their recipe is secret, but they will reveal that it involves several different types of kitchen appliances and implements. The result is something that resembles a thick, soft felt with feathered edges, imprinted with repeating patterns as the artists see fit. The Cloud 9 pieces, though each is unique, collectively resemble an assemblage of white wings swirling together in serene unity. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------Back down to earth and the more mundane dealings of artists and designers, Kassian and Bartok echo Deborah Moss’s frustration with budgeting, especially when it comes to fee structures. Because art is habitually included under construction costs, designers often look to artists to help them reduce the bottom line. As Kassian puts it: “Spend too much on carpeting? Cut the artist’s fee. It makes us feel that our work is not as valued as, say, the accountant’s, or the lawyer’s. Are these contributors asked for a ‘deal’? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------“We have been asked to do large, important jobs for paltry sums, and our answer now is to list the exact service we will deliver for the named price. More work costs more. We think this is eminently reasonable.” -------------------------------------------------The lesson learned? Your profession may choose you, but it’s up to you to approach it professionally. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - --------------------------------------------------•
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2016-11-04 12:42 AM 16-11-14 12:10 PM
Charting a Path
ARIDO’s latest ROI initiative helps
By Leslie C. Smith
For 20 years, Sketch has provided a space for Toronto’s homeless and marginalized youth, aged 16 to 29, to pursue art, music, dance, woodworking, the media arts, and other creative activities. Its advocates say it helps engage youth on a social level, above and beyond the basic shelter-and-food programs offered by the city. Personal empowerment comes from learning and honing practical skills that might be applied to real careers; even better is the sense of self-sufficiency and self-worth these activities generate. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------Four years ago, the Association of Registered Interior Designers of Ontario (ARIDO) launched a charitable initiative called ROI: Renew-Originate-Implement. Its objective is to improve the way essential services and support are provided to Ontarians in need, utilizing the transformative powers of interior design. Previous recipients of ROI’s environmental makeovers include the CAMH Archway Clinic (2013), Fife House (2014) and Variety Village (2015). This year was Sketch’s turn. - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------“Our local GTA chapter has done a lot of fund-raising for Sketch in the past,” said Sharon Portelli, ARIDO’s executive director and registrar. “They really knew the impact Sketch was having on homeless and disadvantaged youth. One of our members, Janine Grossman, past-president CANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
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Photography by Steve Tsai Photography
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of ARIDO, approached me and recommended we consider Sketch.” -------------------------------------------------Rudy Ruttimann, Sketch’s executive director, says their need was great. The program’s 1,200-sq.-ft. administration hub, on the second floor of a converted high school in the Queen Street West neighbourhood, was cramped and chaotic. Entry into the space beyond the double doorway was blocked by a big photocopier and made even more unwelcoming by the positioning of tiny work cubicles that presented their users’ backs to hesitant newcomers. Ruttimann mentions the horrible lighting, the lack of proper storage, and the daily cacophony of up to 45 people noisily conducting business for the 1,200-plus clients that come through the program on a yearly basis. To conduct private meetings or arrange seclusion during her annual bookkeeping audit, Ruttimann used to staple a piece of black cloth to either side of her open office area with a Do Not Disturb card tacked to its front. - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------“Comfort, productivity, and a professional atmosphere” were all priorities from the start, says Portelli, who, together with Mahesh Babooram and Dayna Bradley, comprised the ROI planning committee. Portelli adds: “The amount of important support from the design community to bring these projects to life is just overwhelming.” - - - -
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Left to right: Sketch’s new admin hub is bright, inviting, and furnished in a highly professional manner. Because ARIDO’s ROI initiative was pro bono down the line, Sketch management was able to direct capital funds away from office refurbishment and towards vital programming. Janine Grossman says her design team was overwhelmed by the number of manufacturers offering product. Several of them had to be turned
down, simply due to the need to right-size furnishings and fixtures to fit the relatively compact space. Among the features most prized by Sketch’s executive director, Rudy Ruttimann, is the generous flow of light throughout the previously gloomy office and the sliding doors that grant occasionally necessary privacy to her office and the small boardroom.
-------------------------------------------------Design team members Janine Grossman and Tabitha McCullum echo this sentiment. Grossman points to the dozens of suppliers who agreed to work on the pro bono project, and gives a special commendation to platinum sponsors Brigholme Interiors Group and The Pentacon Construction Group, along with engineers The HIDI Group. “We started designing in the spring, and everything was complete mid-September.” Just in time to celebrate Sketch’s 20th anniversary. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------Ruttimann is obviously thrilled with the outcome. “It went beyond our wish-list. We got things like sitting/standing desks, tackboards and whiteboards, new lights, a new front table, a new kitchen and lots of storage.” She makes specific mention of the Interface carpeting tiles. “We have dogs visiting us from time to time. One of them widdled on the carpet, so we just picked up the tile, threw it in the washing machine, and it was as good as new.” - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------The front table she mentions takes the place of the photocopier machine, which has been moved into a secluded corner. Workstations, complete with Mac computers, Meda chairs by Vitra, and over-
head sound-baffles to lower the noise levels, now present a sideways profile to the entry – welcoming but not intimidating. A large clerestory window lets natural light into Ruttimann’s office, adjacent to a small meeting room, both of which can become private by a simple pull on a sliding door. Built-in storage units reach up to the open mechanical ceiling, now freshly plastered and painted, and fitted with a new HVAC system. The bright white-and-teal kitchen area boasts a stainless steel fridge and dishwasher, as well as overhead shelving so that Sketch now has a place to display its many community awards. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------The biggest thrill for Ruttimann, who has experienced homelessness herself, is the newness of everything. As Janine Grossmann says: “Nothing here is second-hand or second-class. It feels like a real workspace … not overdesigned but with a level of finish to it. It gives people pride, and it gives the place more credibility, especially when it comes to fundraising.” - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------Thanks to ROI, Sketch now looks like what it is: an established and valued member of our society. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------•
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From Mission - - - - - -
How two furniture companies established international presence and reached significant milestones in the development of their brand.
- - - - - - - - to Mandate By Shannon Moore
Saul Feldberg, founder and chairman of The Global Group, stands beside the Executive 105, which arguably pioneered the mid-market segment of the office furniture industry in North America. CANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
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The Global Furniture Group - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------A lot can change in 50 years — especially in the furniture business. -------------------------------------------------Since founding the Global Furniture Group in 1966, Saul Feldberg has witnessed it all: new materials, technologies, manufacturing processes and styles that have pushed his company to adapt and change. But in five decades, one thing has remained the same. The group has upheld a mandate to “build a product that the average person can afford,” while continuously contributing to the industry in significant and substantial ways. -------------------------------------------------After immigrating to Canada in 1953 at the age of 17, Feldberg worked at an upholstery shop and learned the basics of the trade through the production of restaurant benches and chairs. 13 years later, he founded the Global Furniture Group with Bill Kemeny and launched the Executive 105: a highly affordable vinyl-and-fabric chair sold to dealers for only $68. “To give you an idea of how ridiculous this pricing was, one of our competitors sold a similar chair for $290 to their dealers, who of course marked it up before selling to an end user,” recalls Feldberg. “Who could afford to buy it? For $2,900 you could buy a brand new, fully-loaded 1966 Pontiac Parisienne.” - -------------------------------------------------Though Global initially had to defend itself against skeptics, they soon proved to competitors and customers that high quality furniture does not need to generate an equally-high price tag. Over the next few years, the company established itself as a mid-market manufacturer of contract furniture, producing affordable metal filing and storage, wood case goods, desks and chairs — including the 1999 Concorde chair, which has adorned the offices of presidents and prime ministers alike. Today, the Global Furniture Group is celebrated as one of the largest office and institutional furniture manufacturers and marketers in the entire world. With products sold in North and South America, Europe, and the Middle and Far East, the company has truly earned its global name. - -------------------------------------------------Fifty years after its founding, Feldberg remains chairman of the company; though he has since enlisted the help of his family to carry on his mission. His son David worked at the company before becoming president and CEO at Teknion, while his other son Joel now holds those same positions at the Global Furniture Group. Over the next five decades, the company will surely continue to adapt to reflect the evolving industry; but Feldberg is optimistic that their mandate will never change. “I believe that price, value and comfort weigh heavily on the minds of our customers,” he says. “As in the past, Global still strives to ‘Build a product that the average person can afford.’” - - - -------------------------------------------------www.globalfurnituregroup.ca - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Planta, a vegan restaurant by Chase Hospitality Group, located in the tony neighbourhood of Yorkville in mid-town Toronto, was furnished with ISA International’s Maestro Grand and a custom version of the Utopia Arm chairs.
ISA International - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------When Art Sandler first founded the Imperial Sales Agency in 1976, the business operated strictly from his kitchen table. Fast forward 40 years and the furniture company—now branded ISA International— has over 95,000 square feet of warehouse space and product sales recorded worldwide. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------“My father’s first exposure to the industry was when he worked with my grandfather manufacturing residential and custom furniture in a small factory in the west end of the city,” says Kevin Sandler, Art’s son and current president of ISA International. “Later, he founded his own company, and it’s in large part his entity today.” - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------The business, which began by specializing in European wood products, truly became international when Kevin joined the company in 1990. After receiving his education in the business by opening up small retail locations nearby, Kevin launched a more ambitious initiative to establish a presence in the U.S. market. “I was young and naive, and our marketing wasn’t particularly good,” he recalls, “but we did some trade shows in the States, gained some momentum, and eventually built the reputation we have today.” In addition to a successful relationship with the U.S., ISA International has worked in international markets including Saudi Arabia, the Caribbean and Anguilla. - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------With their international growth came new opportunities, including a plan to break further into the office market and an increased focus on upholstery and custom work. Today, custom furniture—including chairs, tables, sofas and ottomans—accounts for approximately 30 per cent of their business. “We’re constantly being asked to do new things
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with new materials, source products and engineer designs,” says Kevin. “One of our biggest challenges is communicating to our customers just how wide and deep our custom capabilities actually are.” - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------Though ISA International encourages its customers to approach them with design ideas, the company is adamant that the projects they take on meet certain criteria. The team works closely with clients to ensure that the products they’re purchasing—or the custom pieces they’re requesting—fit within their setting. “A phrase I like to use is ‘make it appropriate for the application,’” says Kevin. “For example, what’s appropriate for a corporate environment isn’t always appropriate for an airport restaurant. The first step in accepting an order is understanding the application within which the product will be installed.” - - - - - -------------------------------------------------In addition to ensuring that the product fits within its setting, ISA International seeks customer satisfaction throughout the entire process—from the moment they interact with a salesperson to the individual shipping their product at the end of the line. With 90 employees on board, Kevin works with his team to achieve this ambition. “I want the customer to feel as good about the company at the end of the sale as they did at the beginning,” he says. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------Above all, ISA International strives to continue Art’s original mandate. “One of the things my father always brought to the table was great design, and that approach to the business has stayed true,” says Kevin. “There’s no huge revelation in terms of our plans for the next 40 years. We’ll simply continue pushing the envelope with quality design and keep doing what we do.” - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -------------------------------------------------www.haveaseat.com - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - • 11/12 2016 CANADIAN INTERIORS
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2016 ARIDO Awards and Gala
The 600 guests paying $200 a head to attend the annual Association of Registered Interior Designers of Ontario (ARIDO) Awards gala dinner love to network. And so, the pre-dinner cocktail party in the Toronto Hilton ballroom lobby was a bustling affair. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1—Jessica Gozdzierski, interior designer, IBI Group; Kevin Pattison, associate, Mulvey & Banani; and Silvia Pontuschka, freelance designer. 2—Kasian principals Chantal Frenette and Scott Norwood flank Bill Lazaridis, principal, tenant services, the Hidi Group; and Rick Perin, co-founder, DPI Construction Management. 3—Lisa MacVicar, workplace consultant, Steelcase; Krysia Gorgolewska, intermediate designer, SGH Design Partners; Nicolas Koeppe, A&D rep, POI Business Interiors; and interior designer Lucia Toffoli De Basio, principal, LDB Design.
Autumn Assemblages
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Text and photos by David Lasker 4—Mariane Mackenzie, VP retail, Figure3; Jody Russelle, managing director, Cushman & Wakefield; Mark Rowe, regional manager, CBRE; Andrea Janus, facilities manager, Google; and Annie Bergeron, design director, Gensler. 5—Jason Shapiro, director, Mform Construction Group; Fabiana Stubrich, national director, business development, Knoll; and Arlene Dedier, principal, Colliers International. 6—Figure3’s Tamarisk Davies, communications director, and Yasmien Fadl, team leader; and Alexis Palenstein, showroom manager and design lead, Interface.
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7— Beverly Horii, managing director, IA Interior Architects; IIDEXCanada’s Leslie Bruce, director of new business development; and Ian Chodikoff, director of marketing and programming. 8—Lee Stavrakos, account exec, Mohawk Group; Comley Van Brussel Design & Management’s Heather Varty, junior interior designer, and Marina Schaak, senior designer; and Mohawk account exec Derek Young. 9—Frank Tan, account executive, SCI Interiors; Atena Nejad, team leader, SGH Design Partners; and Nicole Powell, account development rep, Humanscale.
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High Wattage
It amounts to a hill of beans, my introduction to what hath Watt wrought. Visiting a recently renovated Loblaws circa 1980, I knew we weren’t in supermarket Kansas anymore, Toto. Instead of de rigueur harsh, drugstore-bright fluorescent lights, Loblaws offered restrained aisle lighting and dramatic pools of light on the merchandise. In place of the clumsy-looking Ann Page (A&P) and Scotch Buy (Safeway) boxes, Loblaws No Name labels had plain yet elegant lowercase Helvetica black lettering on a yellow background: Massimo Vignelli for the masses. The same, but larger, font appeared on the department signs hanging at the ends of the aisles. It was the first time I had seen evidence of packaging and display designers talking to one another. And I was mesmerized by the huge images of raw produce, particularly a brown-on-brown photo mural of coffee beans emerging dramatically from the shadows. More than mere wayfinding devices, these banners made me feel warm, fuzzy and emotionally involved with the goods. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1—At the Watt International 50th-anniversary bash at the Royal Conservatory’s Koerner Hall lobby: interior designer Andrew Gallici, principal, Designstead, and former Watt executive creative director; Jean-Paul Morresi, partner, creative, Watt; and former Watt senior designer Edwin Tumblod, principal designer, Jet Interior Designs. 2—Kearns Mancini Architects principal Jonathan Kearns and former Watt president James King, sales rep, Sotheby’s International Realty. 3—Watt alumna Merril Fung, senior manager, architecture and design, Cadillac Fairview; and Watt designer Charlotte Rauchberger, senior (interior) designers Paulis Ciskevicius and Helen Chen; and former Watt interior designer Victoria Chin. 4—Ron Harris, ex-VP of retail at Watt, now creates jewelry stores around the world under RHarrisDesign; Juan Esquijarosa is Watt’s VP of international business.
Art By Designers
ARIDO’s GTA chapter hosted its Seventh annual Art by Designers at Burroughs event space on Queen Street West. Proceeds from the art exhibition and charitable auction of original works by interior designers benefit Sketch, “a non-profit community arts initiative that helps homeless and marginalized youth experience the transformative power of the arts.”- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1—Carrie Knudsen, sales rep, Designtex; Inga Kantor, interior designer at commercial real estate advisors Savills Studley; and Straticom Planning Asociates’s Courtney Rapp, designer, and Chantel Fyvie, senior designer. 2—Allseatings Cindy Lawton-Moreby, regional sales director, and Vinnie Krieger, territory manager; flank Julia Roser, president of her eponymous furniture consulting firm. 3—Mark Harris, Manager, Media Relations, Design and Marketing, Teknion; and Al Marquez, product application specialist, Knoll. 4—Jonathan Fitzgerald, interior designer, ZAS Architects; Andy Delisi, A&D rep at refurbisher Envirotech Office Systems; and Alex Nagy, A&D consultant at moveable walls firm Bravura Design. 5—Savills Studley’s Andrew Morrow, associate VP, and Matt Simpson, VP project management and design, flank Tony Brenders, CEO, Interior Designers of Canada. 6—Jennifer Brisbin, territory manager, Atlas Carpet Mills; Candice Gilliam, junior specification rep, and Anna-Maria Mastrogiacomo, national A&D specification rep at Weston Premium Woods, which makes high-end wood products for cabinetry and wallcoverings. 7—Donna Dolin; Helen Gillard, business development executive, Global; hospitality designer Martin Hirschberg, whose painting of a Jewish wedding graces the wall; Tara Whittington, A&D manager, Knoll; and Anna Kowalczyk, president at commercial and interior design firm Daedal Design.
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Maytag merriment
When I was a kid, Electrolux was vacuum cleaners, Hotpoint and Thermador were stoves, Frigidaire was, well, fridges, and Maytag was washing machines. Now they cross-cannibalize one another with their high-end major appliances, all of them statement-making works of industrial design. Maytag unveiled its own new line of fingerprint-resistant stainless-steel products, featuring big, tactile knobs, pulls and pushbuttons, at Propeller Coffee in Toronto’s west end. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1—Lisa Canning, of her eponymous interior design firm; home-appliance blogger Mara Shapiro (beniceorleavethanks.com); and Maytag product trainer Marsha Wolfkamp. 2—Maytag’s Meghan Hebeisen, field brand trainer; Laura Smith, brand manager; and Michelle Damet, senior brand manager. 3—CityLine and Breakfast Television design, fashion, beauty and lifestyle expert Shoana Jensen; and Martin Slofstra, New Homes and Condos Editor, Toronto Sun.
Hand Krofted
Self-taught furniture designer Dustin Kroft makes handcrafted modern furniture that hints at Shaker, Scandinavian and Japanese influences, and manufactures it in his shop north of Toronto. In town, meanwhile, he held an open house to inaugurate his eponymous retail store and showroom. Hitherto, the line has only been available in the U.S. market, through the Dwell store. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------•
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1—Dustin Kroft, owner and founder of his self-named company; his brother, Daniel, VP, Giant Containers (retrofit shipping containers); and John MacLeod, Kroft marketing manager. 2—Philip Mitchell Design’s Jacqueline Bernat, designer; Nora Thompson, bookkeeper; and designers Kristi Lee Robb, Megan Durdle and Rana Chow. 3—Showing the flag for graphic design firm Sali Tabacchi: partners Melissa Agostino and Henry Tyminski; and graphic designer Erica Yasuda. 4—Interior design firm Bryon Patton and Associates’s Sean Swayze, designer; and Jason Patton, business manager and son of Bryon.
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Get Your Wings By Peter Sobchak
The 18th edition of the Red Bull Music Academy landed in Old Montreal for five weeks, and brought more than just the funk.
Every year since 1998, Red Bull Music Academy (RBMA) has set up shop in an iconic city and hosted a five week workshop and concert series for music’s most creative minds: instrumentalists, DJs, and producers, selected from thousands of applicants from around the world. In October, the drink company brought their energy to Montreal, and tapped Zébulon Perron + Associés to transform the Phi Centre into a welcoming space where participants can learn and feel at home. - - - -------------------------------------------------No matter how long visitors spent in the Academy space, it was designed to imbue them with a sense of permanence. This lived-in feeling was achieved through accents Perron has shown in previous Montreal projects such as the Parc Avenue wine bar La Buvette Chez Simone and the Jewish bakery Hof Kelsten: vintage pieces and furniture constructed from salvaged materials; and a humanizing of industrial interiors, using materials such as aged wood. - - -------------------------------------------------In keeping with the Academy’s aim of fostering collaboration, each element of the space – from the 10 custom-fitted recording studios to the RBMA Radio studio, lounge, reception area and lecture hall
– was designed to act as a conduit for the exchange of ideas. Aesthetic coherence was achieved through the use of ambient light, vivid colours and seating arrangements that serpentine through each room, encouraging face-to-face interaction. Plants were a key design motif; 770 varieties of overgrown, diverse tropical greenery in every room brought in the natural world. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The Phi Centre was a perfect choice as the main venue for this rockin’ enterprise. Founded by artist, actor, gallerist and entrepreneur Phoebe Greenberg in two restored heritage buildings, Phi Centre houses facilities for recording, mixing and film postproduction, and a virtual reality garden. Programmed concurrently with the fiveweek RBMA festival of concerts, club nights and public talks, an art exhibition in the Centre included works by 22 Montreal-based artists ranging from traditional painting and sculpture to digital mediums such as video, 3D animation, sound and kinetic works, and all connected by the theme of radical materiality – a shared interest in the role of perception and the innovative use of materials and technology. -------------------------------------------------•
CANADIAN INTERIORS 11/12 2016
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