The light fantastic: ODA New York reveal proposal for Toronto's lakeshore
Architecture practice ODA New York has designed a housing development in Toronto that appears to be following the sun.
The US firm created the project, entitled Bayside, for the Canadian city's fast emerging lakeshore neighbourhood. The volume's loosely L-shaped staggered-cubes form was designed to strategically lift, pivot and twist, responding to the sun's daily path.
The cascading effect of this striking design is created using a modular system and also allows a number outside space and amazing vistas. As a result, 163 of the total of 228 units have water views and 221 of them have terraces.
Natural light is an obvious factor in increasing quality of life, and the Bayside development makes sure to make the most of it.
'We are leading a quiet but unyielding revolution to replace the dogma of resigned and compromised city living for one that enriches our lives,' says ODA New York founder and executive director Eran Chen.
'We can and must rethink our reliance on the extruded big box concept and instead design permeable residential buildings more as a collection of individual private homes. Restoring our relationship to nature within our most private spaces is a crucial element in maintaining both our physical and psychological wellbeing.'
Apart from the residential element, the building includes a large communal terrace and pool area facing the waterfront (its glass walls open fully, uniting indoors and out), a day care facility and 10,228 sq ft of retail on the ground floor.
The project is currently just a proposal.
INFORMATION
For more information, visit ODA New York’s website
Renderings courtesy of by-encore
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
The moments fashion met art at the 60th Venice Biennale
The best fashion moments at the 2024 Venice Biennale, with happenings from Dior, Golden Goose, Balenciaga, Burberry and more
By Jack Moss Published
-
Crispin at Studio Voltaire, in Clapham, is a feast for all the senses
New restaurant Crispin at Studio Voltaire is the latest opening from the brains behind Bistro Freddie and Bar Crispin, with interiors by Jermaine Gallagher
By Billie Brand Published
-
Vivienne Westwood’s personal wardrobe goes up for sale in landmark Christie’s auction
The proceeds of ’Vivienne Westwood: The Personal Collection’, running this June, will go to the charitable causes she championed during her lifetime
By Jack Moss Published
-
Downs House II inspires West Coast Modern campaign in Vancouver
Downs House II, currently on the market in Vancouver, inspires a West Coast Modern campaign to save the modernist landmark
By Hadani Ditmars Published
-
Toronto’s Rolex boutique wows with dynamic façade
This Rolex boutique in Toronto features a dynamic, wavy façade in CNC-cut limestone created by local architecture studio Partisans
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Promenade Samuel-de Champlain is a riverside boulevard championing urban green
Promenade Samuel-de Champlain in Quebec gives the city’s river back to its community, transforming a previously neglected urban space
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Chez Léon is a contemporary Canadian retreat in the Quebec countryside
This Canadian retreat, an elegant update of the classic cabin in the woods, is part ski lodge, part tree house, combining traditional materials and stunning views with a light footprint
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
House in High Park is a Toronto home to be discovered slowly
House in High Park by Ian MacDonald Architect is a new-build home in Toronto that takes a problematic plot and transforms it into an exhilarating, contemporary residence
By Ellen Himelfarb Published
-
This Québec school evokes a calming atmosphere in tune with nature
This redesigned Québec school inspires a new paradigm in its architecture genre by creating a welcoming, home-like and nature-inspired environment
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Canvas House’s wavy brick façade stands out in its suburban Toronto context
Canvas House by Partisans brings a wavy brick façade to its sleepy Toronto suburban neighbourhood
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Discover Dyde House, a lesser known Arthur Erickson gem
Dyde House by modernist architect Arthur Erickson is celebrated in a new film, premiered in Canada
By Hadani Ditmars Published