Project Facts
Location
Toronto, ON
Status
Completed 2004
Size
12,000 Sq. Ft.
Partner
Taking its inspiration from the owners’ collection of glass art, this hybrid home, private spa and art gallery explores qualities of transparency, water, and light. The project showcases the owners’ collection of art, furniture, and fine art glass and creates a private setting to foster health and wellness. The L-shaped house sits lightly in the landscape. In both massing and materiality, it integrates with the natural surroundings. The design blurs the boundaries between exterior and interior, building and nature, richness and simplicity, tradition and innovation.
The plan puts living quarters at the centre, with the spa and gallery functions in wings to either side. The layout offers expansive interior and exterior views, and the external treatment employs natural materials, such as Algonquin limestone, copper detailing and awnings, rift-cut oak, and teak windows to integrate with the surrounding site. The residence has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the 2006 Ontario Association of Architects Award of Excellence, the 2005 Architecture Magazine’s Home of the Year Awards, and was declared by Art Info to be one of the world’s 12 best new buildings.
Project Facts
Location
Toronto, ON
Status
Completed 2004
Size
12,000 Sq. Ft.
Partner
Select Awards
2006 – Ontario Association of Architects (OAA) Award of Excellence
2006 – ArtInfo One of the World’s 12 Best New Buildings
2005 – Architecture Magazine, Home of the Year, Citation
The residence is divided into two narrow wings that allow for expansive views and natural light to enter from both sides. The intersection of the two wings, one housing the gallery space and the other the pool and spa, holds the main family living spaces.
The residence is divided into two narrow wings that allow for expansive views and natural light to enter from both sides. The intersection of the two wings, one housing the gallery space and the other the pool and spa, holds the main family living spaces.
"This house has done amazing, amazing things to the way we perceive the world, and ourselves, and in the way that we engage with beautiful things."
—Eva Seidner
"This house has done amazing, amazing things to the way we perceive the world, and ourselves, and in the way that we engage with beautiful things."
—Eva Seidner
A carefully curated materials palette of wood, stone, and copper, used both inside and out to unify the design, reflects the surrounding site and creates a sense of permanence.
A carefully curated materials palette of wood, stone, and copper, used both inside and out to unify the design, reflects the surrounding site and creates a sense of permanence.
The reflecting pool is set deep into the earth to enhance the building’s connection to the landscape. Doors on either side of the narrow indoor pool open to grant access to the surrounding natural scenery.
The reflecting pool is set deep into the earth to enhance the building’s connection to the landscape. Doors on either side of the narrow indoor pool open to grant access to the surrounding natural scenery.
Select Awards
2006 – Ontario Association of Architects (OAA) Award of Excellence
2006 – ArtInfo One of the World’s 12 Best New Buildings
2005 – Architecture Magazine, Home of the Year, Citation
