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Ontario College of Art & Design

Alsop Architects, Toronto, 2004

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The table top is used to create a new sheltered public space, adjacent to the new student lounge in the existing building

Richard Johnson/Interior Images (website) Download Original

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Flagship building for the Ontario College of Art & Design. Perched on inclined stilts sailing high above the street, the building has become an icon for the college and city

Nicknamed ‘the flying tabletop’, the building is the length of a 30-storey tower, tilted on its side. It glows at night, casts dramatic afternoon shadows and has a candy-coated, black and white pixelated surface.

The building is a combination of new-build and refurbishment, which creates a successful new space for students to learn. The existing building was inward-looking, uninspiring and without a clear organising element or focus. Alsop’s 16,000m² refurbishment was built with standardised building components. It is a steel box clad with black and white aluminium top. The deep punched-out windows have large recesses for students to sit in and lean on.

The new sunken entrance features a glass curtain wall with hints of colour, which fills in an existing courtyard and relocates the main entrance. In the building’s four-storey entrance hall there are two express elevators to take students up to the table top where a cluster of classrooms and studios give students the chance to be inspired in the classroom by looking out the Toronto skyline.