CN Tower, Toronto

I did a project on work experience at Sector Light in London about skyscrapers around the world. I was helping to put together research to win the marketing of a new tower in London. 

I thought at the time that the CN Tower in Toronto was a strange building, its the tallest structure in Toronto, and you can see how it towers above the rest of the skyline in the photo above. Its 553 meters high and until 2007 it was the worlds tallest free standing structure on land, but despite this it is not generally considered a high rise building because it does not have successive floors that can be occupied. I actually think its really quite an ugly building, but it definatley stands out on the skyline. It was interesting to see it first hand after having done so much research on it earlier in the year. 

Design It: Shelter Competition

I just came across this competition set up by the Guggenheim and Google SketchUp. 

They asked amateur and professional designers to design shelters. The competition is an extension of an exhibit in the guggenheim which shows work from over 70 years by students who have taken up the challenge of designing building and living in shelters in the environment around the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architectures Arizona and Wisconsin campuses.

Nearly 600 people entered the competition from all over the world and ten finalists have been chosen by students from the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture and it's now up to the public to vote for the winner.

have a look and vote here... http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/education/sackler-center/design-it-shelter

Guggenheim NY

Last year when I visited NY I missed out on seeing the Guggenheim so I made sure I got there this summer. The building was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and built in the late 50's and I just love the way it looks so elegant despite its chunky concrete forms. 

I also think the typeface perfectly compliments the building itself.

Toronto Wave Front

This year Toronto's Harbour front has had a makeover with the addition of a series of different wooden walkways which mirror the shapes of the ripples and waves in the water and create visual interest to the harbour.

The nice thing about the decking is that it is all completely wheelchair accesable as the layers of waves all sit level with the next wave at some point, creating a sort of ramp within the steps. I think this is a lovely well thought out design.

Royal Ontario Museum

This bizarre building is a museum in Toronto. The Lee-Chin Crystal is an extention to the original museum building and was only built two years ago. It is composed of five interlocking, self-supporting prismatic structures that co-exist but are not attached to the original building.

Walking past it definatly excited me. I think its a great piece of modern architecture!