By leaning into the industrial character of its surrounding neighbourhood, the Ace Hotel Toronto cultivates a hyperlocal experience for visitors. The space was awarded July’s FRAME Awards top spot.
Ace Hotel Toronto has been awarded as the winner of the July FRAME Awards (Hotel, 7.5). Designed by Shim-Sutcliffe Architects, the 7,089-sq-m hotel is situated in Toronto’s historic Garment District. Though occupying a new space, it borrows from the neighbourhood’s 20th-century industrial character through its material palette of bricks, metal and concrete. Its material use, in particular, was celebrated by the jury: ‘A radical and frugal space that shows how the use of few raw materials can create an immersive experience,’ says Nicolas Delefosse, founder and creative director at NDDO.
Cover and above: Ace Hotel Toronto was named the winner of July's FRAME Awards for its interiors inspired by its surrounding neighbourhood's industrial origins.
The hotel seeks to form a genuine connection between guests and their surroundings through hyperlocal elements. Guests are immersed in the hotel’s reminiscent design, grounded in the history of its context. ‘This is a great looking hotel with a certain nostalgic but warm atmosphere,’ says Dirk Osinga, founder at Studiosinga. Sontaya Bluangtook, associate design director at UNStudio echoes this sentiment: ‘This project has a beautiful retro elegance with sophisticated modern detailing.'
Kooo Architects designed the Freitag Store Shanghai as a community space with a publicly accessible rooftop garden.
Also inspired by its surroundings, Office N in Tokyo sports a monochromatic terracotta look which the designer intended to be a continuation of the surrounding brick buildings.
Community connection was also central to Kooo Architects’ design of the Freitag Store Shanghai (Single-Brand Store, 7.43) was named the first honourable mention. A publicly accessible rooftop garden not only promotes urban biodiversity but invites the local community to enjoy views of the surrounding neighbourhood. Originating from the 1980s, the space originally served as a textile factory, and special attention was paid during demolition to reuse as many interior components as possible. Also rooted in its context Office N in Shibuya City, Tokyo, was named the second honourable mention (Colour, 7.2). Designed by local studio Flooat, the workspace’s monochromatic terracotta look is inspired by the surrounding brick structures, characteristic of the Otemachi neighbourhood where the office is located.
The Di+Re furniture line’s name is an abbreviation of ‘disassembly and recreation’, the two methods which lead its design and manufacture.
Alex Cochrane Architects designed a series of three retail spaces in the National Portrait Gallery that simultaneously pay mind to the building’s Grade A status and creating an approachable environment for new and recurring visitors.
Domani Architectural Concepts renovated a former grain warehouse into a multifunctional cultural space in Guangzhou.
Another Tokyo-based design studio, Takasu Gaku Design and Associates, was named the third honourable mention for its furniture line Di-Re Products (Furniture, 7.19). The furniture collection’s name is an abbreviation of ‘disassembly and recreation’, the two methods which lead its design and manufacture. The line of stools and tableware is intentionally manipulated during the manufacturing process, giving each piece its unique form. Alex Cochrane Architects’ design of the National Portrait Gallery Retail Spaces was voted as the fourth honourable mention (Single-Brand Store, 7.18). The three adjacent retail spaces seek to celebrate the building’s Victorian Neoclassical architecture while making the spaces approachable for both new and loyal visitors. Flexible and modular fixtures allow the store’s layout to change without the amendment of the Grade A-listed museum’s architecture. Guangzhou Julong Bay Exhibition Center designed by Domani Architectural Concepts tied for fourth honourable mention (Governmental Interior, 7.18). Formerly a grain warehouse, the space was renovated to serve as an urban planning exhibition hall and multifunctional activity centre. Much of the original structure was preserved to maintain its historical character while modernizing it for new cultural use.
