Nuit Blanche/Word on the Street 2007

Wesley gives a very good recap of our night of carousing at Nuit Blanche 2007, all it's highs, lows and everything in-between. I was the unnamed friend that added up to the 'we' in his post, so of course I'm not hurt that he didn't just mention me by name. I think I would've liked to see Incursion in its entirety (if it wasn't for the giant crowd) and the parkour ninjas. The best part of the night was our surprise discovery of the laser graffiti. That was cool, which when followed by the giant locust, made for a great 1-2 punch for art.

And I don't know what happened to the Queen Streetcar, but pretty much walking from Trinity-Bellwoods to the Eaton Centre is TEH suck. Unlike Wes, however, I did make it to Word on the Street the next day, and got some good deals on several copies of past Massey Lectures as well as a signed copy of Ecoholic. Definitely coming back to THAT next year.

While I'm sure Nuit Blanche lost some mystique with some people because of the crowds, I had a very fun night and am eager to make it out for Nuit Blanche 2008. Wes, next year, we will have a better plan, possibly involving bikes...

Pictures from Wes
Torontoist response

The Michael Lee-Chin Crystal

I had the opportunity to visit the newly opened Michael Lee-Chin Crystal addition of the Royal Ontario Museum (the ROM) yesterday.

Most people who comment on it typically either like it or hate it. I fall in the former category. If you're far enough away on either end of Bloor, the ROM looks like either an alien spaceship has crashed into the northern end of the building or someone's chemistry experiment has gone awry (or maybe even remind someone of the crystals exploding through Metropolis in the new Superman movie...but I guess that's too pop-culturish of a simile). Either way, it's a spectacular view that grabs one's attention on the street. It'll make a great landmark and Toronto certainly needs more of it.

The ROM allowed visitors to tour the crystal without the exhibits in place, which was a great idea because it really gives you a good sense of the space itself without the exhibits as a visual distraction. As mentioned in many news items, none of the walls and such are at right angles with each other, which is both an engineering and artistic feat. There's plenty of space, though because it faces north for the most part, it lacks natural lighting into the rooms, which I would've preferred. In certain areas of the crystal, there are portions of the existing building break through the new walls, which I really liked because to me, it reminds visitors that the crystal doesn't exist in and of itself but is a part of the overall museum.

There's also a certain sense of weightlessness in the building, particularly by the windows where it hangs over the street. Not that the ROM is dark and dank, but the contemporary design of the building certainly doesn't invoke the stereotypical notion of a museum. In fact, it's more reminiscent of a modern art gallery. This is certainly the case with the Sugimoto Hiroshi Special Exhibition already installed on the 4th floor. The room feels cavernous, even with the people walking in and out and around the spartan display cases. It'll be interesting to see how the permanent exhibits are set up.

Overall, I enjoyed my tour and am very excited to see it in its completion, with the permanent exhibits, new restaurant and new public space. Toronto architecture's certainly gotten more interesting.

Nathan Phillips Square redesigned...for the better

Courtesy: City of Toronto, Rogers Marvel Architects

About a year and a half ago, there was an internship with the City of Toronto to lay out the background work for what would become the Nathan Phillips Square redesign competition. The interviewer and I discussed what I would've done to the square and needless to say we disagreed in our views (I wanted the colonnade gone, he didn't...as it turns out, the entire property is under heritage designation so any redesign efforts couldn't remove it completely). I also didn't get the internship, which I was bummed about.

Fast forward to yesterday, and a shortlist of designs (4) were presented to the general public yesterday at Toronto City Hall. Torontoist gives a very good summary of all the design presentations (mainly because, well, they were kinda there). So go over there and read about the designs and then come back for my *ahem* expert opinion...

Welcome back. Have the designs fresh in your heads? Good. I agree with Torontoist in that there were definitely good and bad points in each of the designs. Overall though, I liked Rogers Marvel Architects' design the best (which is why it's the only one pictured here). There were two things that sold me on the design. One was the new opening on the East side off Bay street. It makes the colonnade less constricting while providing a new pedestrian entrance. The other reason is the sloping hill. I LOVE IT. You can access this hill from the square OR the colonnade and it incorporates the green space that was previously separated from the west portion of the raised walkway. It literally brings that green space into the square.

I would've liked to see the peace garden moved so that it's not stuck out there like an island, since I can't really envision quiet reflection in the middle of the goings-on of a public square. While I did like Baird Sampson Neuert's idea for the peace garden, incorporating that into the Rogers Marvel's design would make the square too 'west-heavy'. The Ziedler partnership design, while striking and different (especially the undulating green roof), it seems to lack sophistication for what is also the seat of power *cough* of Toronto in addition to the square being a public space. However, I did like the idea of glass railings fort the colonnade, which would make the square more visually accessible.

Therefore, I hope the committee chooses the Rogers Marvels design while incorporating the eco-design features presented by Baird Sampson Neuert and Plant Architects and the glass railings for the colonnade from the Ziedler design. That would be my dream square. I would go there EVERY DAY (and by every day, I mean, whenever I have the chance). It's the least they can do for not hiring me in the first place.


Update (9:14 PM): It's never too early for an update. Dylan Reid of Spacing Wire and I pretty much agree. He also elaborated on several points that I didn't cover. One interesting note from a commenter. The campfire in the Rogers Marvel design is pretty unrealistic. They could've done better with that. A minor quibble, but still.