We are an international culture, though we are still humbled by the great Canadian vastness and its expanses of ghosted territories. We are multicultural, yet singular in our belief that perhaps Canada offers greater opportunity. We are accepting. We are humanists and we unite in caring for each other, regardless of origin. We are a sieve. We welcome those who pass through and celebrate those who stay. We are thirty million people in nine million square kilometers, mostly hugging the southern border and reaching for warmth under the northern lights during long cold winters.

Whether born in Canada, educated in Canada, or Canadian by virtue of choice, we claim many designers as our own. Canada seasons designers and we hap esigner, Jonathan Crinion, practice in the UK and South Africa, but still calls Ottawa home. Teknion’s acclaimed office systems and Keilhauer’s stunningly stylish tables and chairs are also world-renowned.

In the realm of fashion, Roots has tapped into Canada’s national heritage with its emblematic and wildly popular clothing designs. Fashion innovators Dean and Dan, on the other hand, have taken Canadian fashion in another direction entirely with their acclaimed D-Squared lines. And then there is Bruce Mau, who has exported his design-is-life philosophy to every corner of the globe.