Which of the four finalist design teams' concept do you prefer?

  • Moriyama & Teshima Architects + Acton Ostry Architects

  • Patkau Architects + MJMA

  • Provencher Roy + Turner Fleischer

  • Shigeru Ban + Brook McIlroy

Results are only viewable after voting.
.dwg said:
The Moriyama design was the best in my opinion; MJMA second. Moriyama gave a great presentation and their design wasn't based around buzzwords and the concept of "open, flexible space" that has become far too relied upon in design circles much to the frustration of end users. The concept of "breathing rooms", spaces of respite, and the "three bar" arrangement with sliding walls was very coherent and functional, as well as a very clear concept that drove the design. The all CLT construction method was also very interesting and the pitch was very strong.

MJMA in close second. The building science aspect was very strong and the design was sexy, but I am critical of the "everything is open" approach, a somewhat ambiguous concept, and those massive trusses at the top space are ugly - it would be better to just use columns than to have those messing up your floor to floor height in that top-level space.

I'm normally a big MJMA fan and a bit meh on Moriyama but after the presentations, that's my assessment.

Not a fan of Shigeru proposal (despite how striking it is) and Turner Fleischer's design just has way too much going on, especially for an early competition design. The concept was muddy and incoherent.
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Asking you since you were clearly there, but anyone should feel free to chime in: were there any details shared about the composition of the jury panel, the process, or the timeline?
 
ADRM said:
Asking you since you were clearly there, but anyone should feel free to chime in: were there any details shared about the composition of the jury panel, the process, or the timeline?
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The jury consists of 5 or 6 individuals. To be honest, I don't recall the individuals on it, but I'm sure it's been published somewhere online. The jury is deliberating and making a choice today, and George Brown's rep indicated that their hope is to announce it publicly immediately or shortly thereafter.

Sky Blue Skin said:
I don’t understand your objection. If you find it “striking,” why don’t you like it?
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Striking or having a strong visual presence is great, but it's not enough to make a great building. If the way a building looks or how unique it looks and feels are the tip of the iceberg, then all the more important considerations - how it functions and feels for end users on a day-to-day basis, etc. - is the part of the iceberg you don't see. Competitions are very superficial - they look for what's sexy, and uses buzzwords and excitement. But I don't think being visually striking and having everything be open, open, open, flexible, no respite or privacy, no divisions, etc., is what makes a comfortable or liveable building.

As you can tell, I'm very biased against the current trend of every single institutional or academic building or floor area being treated as one large flexible, open volume of collaborative space. People need respite, people need some spaces to be programmed, people need some areas of privacy and quiet. The idea of everything being open and flexible and unprogrammed is lazy and makes miserable spaces for the end users of these buildings.
 
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The membership of the architectural jury is part of today's front page update on this story.

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Here is a different angle of the Shigeru Ban proposal that hasn't been shown here:
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Image, courtesy of designreader

29090566_1606510689469632_6792733581715177472_n.jpg

Image, courtesy of mark.tholen
 
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The Shigeru Ban and Brook McIlroy design looks like something that existed in someone's head for a long time before they finally put it down on paper. The prominent wood framing, the organic lines, the imaginative turret, and the Art Nouveau-like idea to incorporate organically-themed ornamentation in the entrance canopy of a wood-framed building would all make for a great landmark. It would be an icon of the city.
 
ADRM said:
Late in the day before a long weekend is a sub-optimal time to make a big announcement.
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Yeah. It slipped my mind, for a moment, that this is Easter weekend. There are more important things to remember and reflect upon at this time of year.
 
junctionist said:
The Shigeru Ban and Brook McIlroy design looks like something that existed in someone's head for a long time before they finally put it down on paper. The prominent wood framing, the organic lines, the imaginative turret, and the Art Nouveau-like idea to incorporate organically-themed ornamentation in the entrance canopy of a wood-framed building would all make for a great landmark. It would be an icon of the city.
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Looks like something I'd expect to see in the movie Spirited Away. Would be huge for the city!
 
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