Urbanscape Gallery is hosting a literary event featuring David Albahari on October 2nd, at 7:30pm.

David Albahari is a writer and translator from Serbia, and has published nine collections of short stories and eleven novels in Serbian, including Leeches (novel, 2005) and Shadows (short stories, 2006). His collection of short stories Description of Death won the Ivo Andrić award for the best book of short stories published in Yugoslavia in 1982. His novel Bait won the NIN award for the best novel published in Yugoslavia in 1996, as well as the Balcanica Award and Berlin Bridge Prize. His books have been translated into sixteen languages. 

David Albahari has translated into Serbian many books by contemporary British, American, Australian and Canadian authors, including stories and novels by Bellow, Singer, Pynchon, Atwood, Naipaul and Nabokov. He has also translated plays by Sam Shepard, Sarah Kane, Caryl Churchill and Jason Sherman. He is a member of the Serbian Academy of Science and Arts.

In 1994, with his wife and two children, he moved to Calgary, Alberta, where he still resides.

Exhibition: June 24 to July 11, 2009.

Reception: Thursday, July 09,  6:00 - 9:00 pm.

Recognizing and profiling the innovative and expanding skills of Ontario’s leading architectural professionals, the Ontario Association of Architects is showcasing the 2009 OAA award-winning projects at Urbanscape Architectural Gallery. Visitors have a chance to see the winner of this year’s Best in Show Award, The Artscape Wychwood Barns, Toronto, designed by Joe Lobko Architect Inc. and du Toit Architects Limited. This award-winning building has been recognized as the project that most successfully addressed the criteria within the Design Excellence category such as creativity, context, program, environment, “good design is good business” and legacy. The exhibit also features The People’s Choice Award winning project, The Renfrew County Courthouse, Pembroke, by NORR Limited Architects and Engineers.

The 2009 Awards were chosen by Juries comprised of a number of members of the public whose interests and background represent the Ontario design community. One hundred and thirty-six submissions were received and reviewed. Fourteen new buildings in Belleville, Peterborough, Pointe Au Baril and Toronto have been honoured.The OAA Awards offer the Ontario architects, students and interns an annual opportunity to showcase their best work and increase public appreciation of the services provided by the architectural profession. For more information about the winners, please visit OAA website.

Exhibition runs from May 6 to May 30.
Opening on Saturday, May 9 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm.

1958 city hall competition, courtesy of Canadian Architectural Archives, University of Calgary

Urbanscape Architectural Gallery, in partnership with the Toronto Society of Architects (TSA) presents Unbuilt Toronto: The City That Could Have Been. Juried images of unbuilt projects from practising architects and designers are juxtaposed against historical images of unrealized building proposals drawn from Mark Osbaldeston’s book, Unbuilt Toronto: A History of the City That Might Have Been (Dundurn Press, November, 2008). Presented in two parts, Unbuilt Toronto: The City That Could Have Been consists of historical images – covering more than 150 years and as selected from Mark Osbaldeston’s book. Visitors will be exposed to proposals for ambitious and often controversial projects such as the Civic Improvement Committee’s proposed Federal Avenue of 1911, Eaton’s 1928 stand-out College Street tower, and “Project Toronto,” Buckminster Fuller’s futuristic plan for the city from 1968. The exhibition also features images of more contemporary unrealized projects for Toronto, many of which have never before been seen by the general public.The Toronto Society of Architects has invited designers, large and small, to submit unrealized architectural, landscape or urban design projects that might have resulted in a very different city from the one seen today. To ensure potency of dialogue, the contemporary projects submitted must have had substantial potential for realization within the Greater Toronto Area: each project had a client, was part of an invited submission, or was short-listed for a competition. Final selection by the TSA’s curatorial panel of architects, educators and urbanists was based on design excellence, the context for cancellation, and the significance of impact had the project been realized.

Exhibition is a part of the 5th annual Festival of Architecture and Design (fAd). Each May, fAd showcases Toronto’s architecture and design communities with a variety of events such as exhibitions, films lectures, readings and walking tours.Meet local designers and international architects, activists and academics. Celebrate good design and discover how it shapes our city and enriches our lives. More information at www.toronto.ca/fad

september 3-14 : 2008 junction arts festival

opening night party : wednesday, september 3, 7-9 p.m.

the juried art exhibition, featuring work by :

bernardo cioppa

"i’m intrigued by the gritty side of life : and what’s grittier, darker than our urban cities, and the people who make the streets their homes? "

"they appear to want to welcome you into their lives, even briefly : "

w. stephen cooper

recently, photographer cooper has also turned his lens toward the relics of more recent times: ghost towns and historic artifacts, preserved by the clean, dry environment of desert regions : 

www.wstephencooper.com

rob doda

do-da (doe – da) n . an eclectic visionary, illusionist, photographer, and artist

www.robdoda.com

martha griffith

"when i did get candy, i would eat everything at once : it was instant gratification : long-term consequences were not on my radar : the chocolate bait series explores these ideas on a number of levels : "

joseph michael

absolutely random camera tosses can be complex : images were created by setting the camera on self-timer and throwing it into the air moments before the shutter was released :

www.josephmichael.ca

visit the festival website for more information :

august 2008 : architecture & design showcase

opening reception : thursday, august 21, 6 - 9 p.m.

featuring two exhibitions :

twenty + change : 

twenty + change is an exhibition of contemporary architecture, landscape, and urban design projects : the exhibit features built, in-the-works, and speculative projects by twenty designers and firms working in toronto : the intention of the exhibition is to showcase work by emerging practices and designers who have yet to receive widespread public and media attention : toronto has a rich community of young designers who continuously push the limits of their discipline, setting a new agenda for innovation, invention, and social and physical environmental quality : by presenting the products of a new generation of designers, twenty + change foreshadows the near future of architecture, landscape, and urban design in toronto :

and :

2008 oaa awards :

the annual oaa awards offer ontario architects, students and interns the opportunity to showcase their best work and increase public awareness and appreciation of the architectural profession and architectural works :

highlights for 2008 include : the landmark award, which recognizes buildings that identify and enhance community, as well as establishing a standard of design excellence for future generations; and the new people's choice award, which enabled the public to vote for their favourite project in the category of design excellence :

on the oaa website :

october 4 - october 17 : 2007

the oaa awards offer the ontario architectural profession an annual opportunity to present its best work to a public and professional audience; it advertises the excellence of both individual award winners and the profession as a whole; it fosters a greater appreciation of architecture and architects among all levels of society, professional and non-professional :