Architecture

Toronto lifeguard stations transformed into quirky beach installations

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The 2022 Winter Stations competition includes this colorful geodesic dome named the Hive, by Canada's Kathleen Dogantzis and Will Cuthbert
Jonathan Sabeniano
Enter-Face by Turkey's Melt is a project that riffs on the time people have spent speaking on Zoom, Skype and other similar services during the COVID-19 pandemic
James Bombales
The Hive, by Canada's Kathleen Dogantzis and Will Cuthbert, takes the form of a geodesic dome and is inspired by honey bee colonies
Jonathan Sabeniano
Wildlife-guard Chair, by Mickael Minghetti and Andres Jimenez Monge from France and Canada, is an arty angular structure inspired by Canada's northern cardinal bird
James Bombales
Introspection was designed by University of Toronto John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design students Christopher Hardy, Tomasz Weinberger, Clement Sung, Jason Wu, Jacob Henriquez, Christopher Law, Anthony Mattacchione, George Wang, Maggie MacPhie and Zoey Chao. The students were led by Associate Professor Fiona Lim Tung and its overall design features a mirrored interior and a bright red exterior
Jonathan Sabeniano
One Canada was created by University of Guelph, School of Environmental Design and Rural Development's Alex Feenstra, Megan Haralovich, Zhengyang Hua, Noah Tran, Haley White and Connor Winrow. They were led by Assistant Professor Afshin Ashari. The design draws inspiration from Canada's indigenous people and its overall form aims to symbolize bridging the gap between the Indigenous and non-Indigenous people of Canada
Jonathan Sabeniano
S'winter Station was designed by Ryerson University’s Department of Architectural Science's Evan Fernandes, Kelvin Hoang, Alexandra Winslow, Justin Lieberman and Ariel Weiss. They were led by Associate Professor Vincent Hui. The shelter's design is meant to embody movement and its exterior form helps control the amount of light and snow that enters
Jonathan Sabeniano
The 2022 Winter Stations competition includes this colorful geodesic dome named the Hive, by Canada's Kathleen Dogantzis and Will Cuthbert
Jonathan Sabeniano
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Toronto's annual Winter Stations event is an interesting design competition that transforms the city's existing beach lifeguard stations into temporary structures for its winter season. The winners for 2022 were recently announced and range from abstract installations to relatively practical shelters, all of which draw inspiration from the theme of resilience.

The 2022 Winter Stations competition has chosen just three winning designs out of hundreds of international submissions this year, though there are also three additional student designs highlighted too. To be clear, the structures aren't meant to be practical, but are more like art projects and give people a reason to wrap up warm and head down to the beach during winter (they are then removed when spring arrives in Canada).

"Over the course of the last year and a half, we have so clearly witnessed the immense ability of people to withstand and push through challenging and unprecedented times," said the organizers of Winter Stations. "In recognition and celebration of this courage, the theme chosen for the 2022 edition of Winter Stations is Resilience: the ability to withstand adversity and recover from difficulties.

"To be resilient, one is faced with hardship, confronts it, and pushes to overcome it. Whether on a micro or macro scale, families, livelihoods, cities, and countries have experienced loss and isolation – but also – have been presented with great opportunities for adaptation and growth. This year, we not only reflect on all the ways people have had to be resilient, but the ways people have channeled this resilience, be it through communities, movements, support networks and more."

Enter-Face by Turkey's Melt is a project that riffs on the time people have spent speaking on Zoom, Skype and other similar services during the COVID-19 pandemic
James Bombales

Enter-Face, by Melt from Turkey, consists of two separate structures constructed from wood and fronted by glazing. The design riffs on the many hours that millions of people have spent interacting on Zoom, Skype and other similar services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"It proposes two dark boxes with distant holes for people to get their upper bodies inside and stay detached from one another," explained the designers. "Within the boxes, a textured transparent surface is placed through which the distant visitors, who became a group of viewers now, watch the life outside the box as if they are spectating a never-ending moving image on a screen together."

The Hive, by Canada's Kathleen Dogantzis and Will Cuthbert, takes the form of a geodesic dome and is inspired by honey bee colonies
Jonathan Sabeniano

The Hive, by Canada's Kathleen Dogantzis and Will Cuthbert, is probably the most practical of the trio of winners and takes the form of a geodesic dome with a wooden structure and glazing. Its overall design is informed by honey bee colonies.

"The resilience witnessed among communities in the face of challenging and unprecedented times is paralleled among the honey bee," explained the designers. "Honey bee colonies are primarily composed of worker bees whose greatest measure of resilience is maintaining hive temperature throughout the cold winter months."

Wildlife-guard Chair, by Mickael Minghetti and Andres Jimenez Monge from France and Canada, is an arty angular structure inspired by Canada's northern cardinal bird
James Bombales

Wildlife-guard Chair, by Mickael Minghetti and Andres Jimenez Monge from France and Canada, is an arty angular installation that's inspired by one of Canada's birds.

"Inspired by the northern cardinal bird - a species present all-year-round along Lake Ontario – the station seeks to engage the visitors with Ontario's wildlife," said the designers. "The diversity of species taking refuge in the dense urban environment is both remarkable to observe and critical to preserve."

The Winter Stations shown will remain in place on Toronto's Woodbine Beach until March 31, except for Wildlife-guard Chair, which is currently installed on a pier in Hamilton, with the plan being to move it to the beach with the others sometime in early March. The winners and student designs highlighted by the competition can be seen in the gallery.

Source: Winter Stations

View gallery - 7 images
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1 comment
ljaques
Nice geodesic domes, but smoked glass would be much nicer and more practical. Who thought of orange and yellow panels, anyway? And whoever thought the other Canadian edifice resembled an indigenous anything ought to lay off the LSD panes, don't you think?