Style & Design

Using one art form to describe another is a curious business. Design inspiration can come from anywhere, and Montreal, Que.-based architect Patrick Blanchette, turned to playing an electronic dance music track repeatedly to zero in on ideas…

I have been thinking about foresight, especially as it seems so lacking in these unusual times. And hindsight. They seem to be linked. Hindsight is the parent of foresight, isn’t it? Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to…

Taking its cue from the Jenga wooden block game, Toronto, Ont.,-based design and development company Baukultur/ca recently completed the construction of two new-build town homes integrated with sustainability in mind. With 25 feet in…

Some people desire to create beauty. It’s as simple as that. Not only do they want to have beauty in their lives, they feel that they can create it, edifying both themselves and others. This seems to be something embedded in our human…

Lately, I’ve found myself busy being a designer. It seems that I should describe this as working, but it actually feels more like playing. That might be more accurate, as there isn’t likely to be any remuneration downstream, but it’s…

A poorly constructed 1970s townhome in the Westmount area of Montreal, QC, was purchased by a family with one thing in mind — a total gut job. Architectural firm RobitailleCurtis, also of Montreal, was given the mandate to turn the tired…

Innovation, competition and personalities on display I have been going to trade shows for a long time. As a product designer, I’m especially interested in products, and trade shows offer the most intense new-product-immersion…

Hotel restaurant/bar reno embracing ghosts of Expo ’67 Germain Hotels’ flagship property, Le Germain Hotel, in downtown Montreal, Que., has undergone a major renovation that both sheds and embraces its Expo ’67-era brutalist concrete…

Private school administration building opens up to the light THE HOME OF THE FEDERATION of Private Educational Institutions (Fédération des établissements d’enseignement privés, or FEEP), in Montreal, Que., has left the 1960s and joined…

Investment in gratitude? Value is a word that is worth reflecting on. In fact, it’s more central to our lives than we are generally aware. Usually, we use this word in reference to economics. When it comes to buying or selling things,…