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Toronto: some notes on civic and commercial architecture

I’ve been spending some time with Torontonians, including an architect and an interior designer, and giving some thought to Toronto specifically and cities in general. As ever, I walk around with a camera, always scouting locations, always taking visual notes.

Construction cranes, Toronto

At the moment, Toronto is growing and building. (The city bird seems to be the construction crane.) Lots of high-rise condos. Lots of green building. Lots of glass and steel. In part because Toronto is self-consciously trying to promote it’s stature in the world, there are some projects by big name architects.

Herewith some visual notes:

Henry Moore sculpture outside the Art Gallery of Ontario

Frank Gehry’s exterior of the Art Gallery of Ontario (here with Henry Moore’s sculpture) is impressive, But then there’s the interior.

Interior, Art Gallery of Ontario

Daniel Libeskind’s addition to the Royal Ontario Museum gets raves and pans.

Daniel Liebeskind’s addition to the Royal Ontario Museum

The Sharp Centre for Design at the Ontario College of Art and Design, by Will Alsop, Alsop Architects:

Will Alsop’s Sharp Centre for Design

Lest you get the idea that it’s all new, there are some fine examples of older architecture:

Old City Hall, Ontario
Old City Hall, Ontario

 

The Great Hall, Union Station, Toronto
The Great Hall, Union Station, Toronto

More photos of Toronto Civic and Commercial architecture, including more details of some of the buildings shown here, with notes, are available on my flickr feed.

I may have a later post on residential architecture.