Issue #60 May 2004

In this issue:

DESIGN EXCHANGE NEWS
President's Message
This Month
On now: Exhibitions
On now: Competitions
Summer Camp @ DX
DX Golf Tournament
CC: Cultural Currency Project
Membership
Weddings at DX
Volunteer at DX

JOB LISTINGS AND OTHER NEWS
Design events and exhibitions
Job Listings



PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

This past month has been a whirlwind!I had the privilege of judging the Interior Design Awards of Excellence for British Columbia. The entries were terrific and it was great to examine West Coast design sensibility. There are some outstanding entries and the West Coast design community will celebrate on May 13th at their Awards Gala. For more information, check out the IDIBC website.

While in Vancouver, I was overjoyed to meet Arthur Erickson and talk to him about speaking here at the Design Exchange. The great architectural icon will celebrate his 80th birthday soon and is a role model to many students and professionals. Look for upcoming information about Arthur at the DX!

Last week, I was in Saratoga Springs, New York to speak at a regional SMPS (Society of Marketing Professional Services) conference about Generational Marketing. Saratoga Springs was established as a resort in 1871, featuring several cold mineral springs. The town has many splendid turn of the century Victorian homes. Most are in exquisite physical condition and in close proximity for a walking tour. As well, this town boasts the oldest horse race track in the US and was the site for numerous races starring Sea Biscuit and War Admiral during the late 1930s. It's a great summer place to visit.

This week at the DX, we are hosting many fabulous events. On Wednesday night we are hosting a reception for Connect, our national post-secondary design competition. We received over 100 entries for the competition which focused on three distinct areas: automotive restyling, award of excellence certificate design and a prosthetic device. These competitions were generously sponsored by Decoma, Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation and Dupont. For more information, check out http://www.dx.org/whats_on/connect.html.

On Thursday night, celebrate with us as we officially open 2004 digifest: on the move. digifest is a fantastic festival that promotes digital culture and design. With over 25 speakers in 4 days, a great exhibit at the DX, and fun parties, this festival is a huge success. There are only a few passes left! Get yours now! Check out http://www.dx.org/digifest/ for more information. Make sure you join us for the opening gala on Thursday night. It features an exciting boxing match!

I am beginning to slow down at bit. With just about 5 weeks to go before my new son, Umberto Thomas, arrives, I have a hard time waddling around the DX! Please forgive me if I haven't made it to all of your events lately. We have so many extraordinary plans this Spring for the DX. Visit us anytime. My door is always open.

Sam



THIS MONTH

DIGIFEST 2004 3 Days Left to Purchase digifest 2004 Passes! digifest 2004 is an international celebration of digital culture and design. Produced by the Design Exchange in partnership with Ontario Science Centre and Harbourfront Centre, digifest is the largest festival of its kind in Canada. Through the streams, HOME, SELF, and TRIBE, we feature over 25 exciting speakers and installations that examine this year’s theme “on the move”. Whether it is questioning the ethics of control or re-imagining our relationship with technology, digifest 2004: on the move promises to engage you with four days of thought-provoking content.

In keeping with our theme of being “on the move”, digifest 2004 takes place in three locations: - Design Exchange, May 13 -14 (GALA and HOME) - Ontario Science Centre, May 15 (SELF) - Harbourfront Centre, May 16 (TRIBE) Full festival passes include admission to the opening night gala featuring a keynote address by Steve Mann, and three full days of programming. Passes are available now for $100. Tickets for the keynote/gala, taking place May 13 at the Design Exchange, can be purchased separately for $50. Rush day passes will be available on the day of the event at the venue box office for $30 per day. Visit http://www.dx.org/digifest or call 416.216.2160 to purchase tickets. For more information, visit http://www.dx.org/digifest or contact Paola Poletto at paola@dx.org, 416.216.2155, or John Sobol at john@dx.org, 416.216.2126. digifest is presented by Design Exchange in partnership with Harbourfront Centre and the Ontario Science Centre. DX would like to gratefully acknowledge the generous support of Heritage Canada, Telefilm Canada, the Canada Council for the Arts, ING,Ontario Media Development Corporation, the Ontario Arts Council, Sutton Place Hotel, Now Toronto, Level 28, Research in Motion, Canadian Film Centre and Young Canada works.

---

“Indeed, a cautious case can be made that Canada is now rather cool.” – The Economist Visit Cabin May 10 – June 12, 2004 Felissimo Design House, New York City, 10 West 56th Street Cool or not, Canada’s international stature is blossoming. Building on this growth, Motherbrand has invited some of Canada’s most talented designers to re-imagine a Canadian myth: the cabin. Cabin consists of more than two-dozen new design concepts, from furniture to textiles. Drawing from the best of the cabin experience, both real and imagined, the familiar objects of the cabin have been transformed for everyday. Opening Reception May 17, 2004 5 - 6 pm: Lecture entitled “How not to Criticize Consumerism” by Canadian philosopher and author, Joseph Heath 6 - 9 pm: Joint reception with Felissimo Design House RSVP to cabin@motherbrand.com www.motherbrand.com

Motherbrand acknowledges the generous support of Azure Magazine, the Design Exchange, Maclean’s Magazine, Unibroue, Hiep Vu Photography, the Canadian Consulate-General in New York, the Trade Routes Programme of the Department of Canadian Heritage, and the Ontario International Marketing Centre – New York.

---

LECTURE

future:perfect
Innovative Thinking on Architecture and Design
Tuesday, May 25 at 7:00 pm

Design Exchange, Knoll, and Metropolis Magazine present lectures by:

Susan Szenasy, Metropolis Magazine - What does Ethics have to do with Design?
Tom Wujec, Alias - Imagination, The Big Picture, The Long View and Deep Design
Richard Williams, HOK- Sustainability in Practice: A Work in Progress

$12 (general admission) $10 (students, seniors, DX members)
To reserve tickets, contact: 416.216.2160 or info@dx.org

---

Doors Open Toronto 2004 at DX May 29th and 30th The Design Exchange opens its doors for this exciting annual city-wide event. Highlights of this free admission day include guided tours of our historic building and the opening of MasterBuilders, an exhibit showcasing the work of Ontario's building industry.

ON NOW: EXHIBITIONS

3rd Floor, Design Exchange
Mon – Fri: 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Sat-Sun: 12:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
$8 general admission, $5 students/seniors, free for DX members, digifest and Transportable Environments badge holders

HOME : SELF : TRIBE Until May 19 digifest exhibit Curator's tour for Home : Self : Tribe Tuesday, May 11, 4:00 - 6:00 pm View the exhibition for free and speak with digifest co-directors John Sobol and Paola Poletto. The exhibition explores mobility subjects from a wide range of perspectives, among them artistic, commercial, technological and social. New Voices: HOME presents 4 winning entries from the digifest 2004 New Voices Competition. Re-Dress, curated by Christine Redfern, features work by 5 Quebec artists developing unique human-computer interfaces. Home: Mobile, Modular and Light, curated by Filiz Klassen, features work exploring transportable environments.

HOME: SELF: TRIBE features work by: David Crawford, Jessica Irish, Paddy Harrington, Rainey Straus, Katherine Isbister, Philomène Longpré, Joanna Berzowska, Paul Litherland, Simon Laroche, Etienne Grenier, David Lemieux, LOT-EK, Levitt Goodman Architects, House Brand, CP Company, Technogel, and Panelite.

HOME: SELF: TRIBE is sponsored by the Canada Council of the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, CCR Solutions, Bay Bloor Radio, Sharp, and Aquos.

Chalmers Design Centre and Teknion Exchange Lounge, Ground Floor of Design Exchange
Mon – Fri: 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Sat-Sun: 12:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Free admission

Connect - Design Exchange National Student Design Competitions May 12 – 30 The winners of the post-secondary school design competitions will be announced at the awards gala on Wednesday, May 12 at 6 p.m. All entries will be displayed on the ground floor of the Design Exchange for the month of May. If you are interested in attending the awards gala please email connect@dx.org

ON NOW: COMPETITIONS

 

National Post Design Exchange Awards 2004 Call for Entries Deadline: October 1, 2004 Canada’s only design competition to judge design by results – balancing function, aesthetics and economic success. Categories: Architecture, Interior Design, Urban Design, Engineering, Landscape Architecture, Visual Communications, Industrial Design, New Media, and Fashion Design. For more information, contact dxa@dx.org Official Hotel: The Fairmont Royal York.

SUMMER DESIGN CAMP 2004 @ DX Weekly Sessions - July 5 to August 27 This year the Design Exchange offers Summer Camp for campers ages 6 to 13. Weekly session themes include: Building the City of the future, Typography and Printing, The World of Colour, Materials and Structures, Fashion, Designing with Nature, Planes, Trains & Automobiles, Animation. For more information and registration visit: http://www.dx.org/education/camp.html

DX KEITH MULLER MEMORIAL GOLF CLASSIC

Tuesday June 29 2004 at Angus Glen
Welcome at 11am, golf clinic, followed by lunch, and shotgun start at 2pm, dinner and auction in the evening, 144 players

This year, our annual golf classic will be a tribute to Keith Muller who passed away last fall. Keith, who was one of the Founding Members of the Design Exchange, was an avid golfer, an award-winning designer, and a champion of design excellence. Proceeds will go to support our design education programs for elementary, secondary and post-secondary students, as well as our Resource Centre, which serves as a library and exhibit space for the DX Permanent Collection of Canadian design. DX charitable no. 6214 11923 RR00011.

For more information, contact Rosa Ricci at 416-216-2127 or rosa@dx.org

How to get involved:
Come out and play! Corporate foursomes are $2,000, and $3,000 including hole sponsorship.
Individuals play for $500/golfer.

To register call Frank McGrath at 905.726.4488 or email: fmacgrath@gtigolf.com

Donate Prizes for Raffle & Live Auction! Call Rosa Ricci at 416.216.2127 or email rosa@dx.org.

Sponsorship opportunities available - Lunch, Dinner and Golf Cart Sponsors!
Call Susan Rutledge 416.216.2134 or email susan@dx.org



CC: CULTURAL CURRENCY PROJECT

BARK Design Collective invites you to participate in the upcoming exhibition CC: Cultural Currency, first at the Design Exchange starting July 29th, 2004, then at Canada House, London, England, September 2004 during 100% Design and finally in Tokyo, Japan later in Fall 2004.

BARK is interested in mapping the course of how ideas are exchanged between Canadians. BARK seeks to find answers to the questions: "What is the value of Canada’s Cultural Currency?” and “What are the breadth and impact of Canadian design?" In simplistic terms – we seek to create a chain letter of words, objects, illustrations, photographs and sounds that map the evolution of ideas.

For more information, visit www.barkbark.ca or contact submit@barkbark.ca.

MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION

The DX is pleased to announce that the membership program now includes a Corporate Membership category.
Fee: $600. For information contact member@dx.org or call Rosa Ricci at 416.216.2127

To download a membership application from our web site, just visit www.dx.org and click "Join us" on the home page.



WEDDINGS AT THE DX

Your Historic Event at our Heritage Facility At the Design Exchange, we are passionate about creating memorable events! Our team of experts will orchestrate an event that captures the romance and elegance of your important occasion. We have rooms available in several sizes and price ranges. Please consult our web site at www.dx.org for more information.

VOLUNTEER AT DX

Volunteers needed for digifest from May 13th - 16th!

We’re always looking for volunteers to assist at the Info Desk, the Resource Centre, in the Meeting and Event Services Department, or as Docents for our exhibits. For information on how to register contact volunteer@dx.org or 416. 216. 2160.

OTHER NEWS: DESIGN EVENTS AND EXHIBITIONS

Site Unseen: Laneway Architecture and Urbanism in Toronto
Until May 15
Location: Ballenford Books on Architecture, 600 Markham Street, Toronto, 416.588.0800
An exhibition of the realized efforts of an integrated team of collaborators from the disciplines of architecture, landscape, and urban design, born from a Masters option studio at the University of Toronto. By the research-based design studio from the University of Toronto Faculty of Architecture Landscape and Design, led by Brigitte Shim and Donald Chong: Steffanie Adams, Abir Ali, Kiran Chhiba, Laragh Halldorson, Jane Hutton, Al Kalby, Adam Kanza, Selena Kwok, Chris Routley, Kirsten Thomson, Delnaz Seyedeh-zahra-de Yekrangian, Jeffrey Zhuang, Karen Zwart Hielema. The exhibit includes work by Lisa Klapstock, Chris Routley and Arthur Goss (1881-1940). Klapstock is a Toronto based artist. Between 1998 and 2002, she worked in the laneways of her downtown Toronto neighbourhood, using photography to document surface details and overlooked spaces, and to investigate the relationship between public and private realms. Routley’s work investigates discreet moments found in the surface fabric of Toronto’s laneways. Using intersection as a compositional device, the work explores the relationships between colour and texture and the physical consequence of wear and neglect. Goss was Toronto’s official city photographer from 1911-1940. During this time he documented a wide range of municipal activities.

Mercer Living… Better Living!
May 12-20, 2004 noon to 7pm: exhibition
129 Spadina Ave., 2nd floor
May 20, 2004: gala fundraising event
Art exhibition meets Wheel of Fortune showroom, as over 50 local and international artists, designers, and architects create one-of-a-kind works of furniture, art, and household items offering their vision of how we can live better. All works will be auctioned at a gala fundraising event May 20th in support of Mercer Union, a centre for contemporary art. Tickets available for $25. The “Mercer Living… Better Living!” exhibition runs May 12th to 20th from Noon to 7PM at 129 Spadina Ave., 2nd floor. Take a sneak peek before the auction, select your favourite pieces from a long list of featured artists – Atelier Van Lieshout, Preston Scott Cohen, Robin Collyer, Joe Scanlan and Fastwurms, among others – and discover better living through art! For more information, call 416.536.1519 or visit www.mercerunion.org.

Urban Leadership Awards Luncheon
May 26, 2004
Four award recipients in four categories (City Soul, City Renewal, City Livability, and City Engagement) will be announced for the first time. Announcement of the finalists at http://www.canurb.com/awards/finalists.php. The first Jane Jacobs Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Mr. Ed Mirvish. Mayor David Miller is special guest and Andy Barrie is Master of Ceremony. For more information, contact michellelevy@rogers.com

Eternal Egypt: Masterworks of Ancient Art from The British Museum
Until June 6, 2004
Royal Ontario Museum
Discover a time when unprecedented wealth and power made Egypt the greatest empire the world had ever known. Spanning three thousand years and thirty dynasties, this exhibition includes sculpture, relief, papyri, jewelry and more. Presented by Ford Motor Company Fund. Tickets available through TicketKing at 416.872.1212 / 1.800.461.3333 or in person at the ROM.

The Design Business Association Awards
Deadline June 9, 2004
The Awards scheme rewards commercially successful design projects from all around the world and winners and finalists are promoted extensively. Further details are available on the DBA website www.dba.org.uk.

Home + Style Studio Tour
October 22-24, 2004
Join your community in a city-wide celebration of art and design for a worthy cause and promote your business at the same time! Download Call for Entries pdf http://www.studiotouronline.com/2004CallForEntries.pdf
The Fifth Annual HOME + STYLE STUDIO TOUR is the Toronto-wide arts event and HIV/AIDS fundraiser. Fine artists, artisans, designers and home décor professionals across the GTA throw open the doors to their studios, homes, galleries and showrooms to celebrate design and raise funds and awareness for HIV/AIDS. The event fosters emerging talent in fine arts and design via mentorship programs, includes celebrity appearances and Special Attractions on all topics Home + Style! Those who wish to participate that do not have their own space can be placed as a guest professional at a NEW Tour-Destination!
For more information, contact Jeffrey Stolberg, Event Organizer, at 416.221.1937 or js@studiotouronline.com.

Conserving the Modern in Canada National conference at Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario.
May 6-8, 2005
Trent University has been selected as the venue for Canada’s first national conference on the conservation of twentieth century buildings and landscapes. Conserving the Modern in Canada: buildings, ensembles and sites 1945-2005 is a conference planned for architects, historians, planners, academics, conservators, engineers, landscape architects, archivists and other enthusiasts of mid-twentieth century Canadian architecture. The goal of this inaugural conference is the formation of a national community to address the emerging challenges of advocacy, research, documentation, evaluation, commemoration, management, and conservation of our built heritage of the modern era.Co-chaired by Susan Algie & James Ashby. The "Conserving the Modern in Canada" web-site will be launched this spring.

JOB LISTINGS

Employment Opportunity at the Design Exchange
Summer Camp Leaders
Deadline: Monday, May 17, 2004, 5pm.
Start date: Late June, 2004 End Date: End of August, 2004
Pay: $10 per hour

Under the supervision of the Director of Education Programs, Summer Camp Leaders will work with a group of children between the ages of 6-13 on a variety of design based activities. The Leader will prepare materials for daily activities, instruct campers in design activities, supervise campers within the DX building and on field trips, and behave in a professional, friendly and courteous manner toward campers, parents and other staff members.

Qualifications:
- Students currently enrolled in a college or university design program (interior, graphic, industrial, or fashion design, architecture or landscape architecture)
- At least one year of experience working with children in an educational and/or camp environment
- First aid/CPR training is an asset

Resumes with a cover letter should be forwarded to:
Anne Kaye
Director, Education Programs, Design Exchange
by email (preferred): education@dx.org
or Fax: 416-368-0684
or mail: 234 Bay Street, P.O. Box 18, Toronto-Dominion Centre, Toronto, ON M5K 1B2

THANKS TO OUR PARTNERS

The Design Exchange would like to thank the following partners for their support of our organization:

City of Toronto Economic Development
Teknion Furniture Systems
Cadillac Fairview
Sony Canada

The Design Exchange is a charitable organization registered with Revenue Canada (Charitable no. 6214 11923 RR0001).




Design Exchange
234 Bay Street
Toronto-Dominion Centre
Toronto, Ontario M5K 1B2
416. 363. 6121
www.dx.org


To subscribe to Express, visit www.dx.org and click the link "DX Express E-news" to enter your email address.

To unsubscribe from: [list_name], COPY and PASTE this address into your browser.:

[plain_list_unsubscribe_link]