TORONTO — Toronto architecture firm RAW Design has selected an active construction site in the city as the home base for its annual RAW X lighting exhibition.
The summertime instillation is intended as a challenge to developers, engineers, planners, city officials, designers, urbanists and artists to provoke new ideas about city nightlife, said a recent media release.
This year’s installation will be hosted at the base of a new tower under development by Streetcar in the Riverside neighbourhood of east Toronto. The displays will transform the “anonymous concrete backdrop” of the site into an evening playground, the statement explained.
“As Toronto moves toward becoming a 24-hour city, we need to manage our relationship to light after hours,” said Roland Rom Colthoff, founder of RAW, in the statement. “By and large our public spaces are conceived for daytime. There is a tremendous opportunity to shape urban life after dark by focusing on engagement.
He added, “Riverside is a microcosm for the entire city. You used to have a clear distinction between established single-family residences on side streets, and more active uses along Queen. With new developments coming into the area, those distinctions blur. Streetcar has contributed to the reinvigoration of the area at night with the introduction of the Broadview Hotel, and they have also been leading the charge in terms of developing the east end.”
The installation was launched June 27.
RAW Design was recognized as the Ontario Association of Architects Best Emerging Practice in 2009. Projects include Cube Lofts, 455 Dovercourt, Oblong Lake Cottage, the MINI Downtown dealership, Daniels City of Arts and 109 Oz.
Recent Comments
comments for this post are closed