The 14th iteration of Interior Design Show, Canada’s largest contemporary design fair, took place from Jan. 27 to Sunday, bringing speakers, installations, and 300 exhibitors to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. This year, show director Shauna Levy employed visual merchandiser Jentry Chin as a creative consultant. “He helped us put all the elements together,” Levy said. “We wanted the branding and the branding experience to be really tight.”
Inspired by Toronto’s recent growth and booming condo industry, Levy settled on an industrial look for promotional material, signage, and decor. Chin was on board. “It’s raw, which is really big right now, and it’s inexpensive,” Chin said. The show made use of scaffolding, exposed truss, fencing, wooden crates, and loading pallets. Invitations and advertisements incorporated cranes, a common sight in downtown Toronto.
Branding, signage, and way-finding material at the show was larger and had a more consistent look. Show signage was in all caps, in black or gray. “It’s a little more user-friendly,” Chin said. Builds were also taller than in the past. “It’s almost like you’re in a city, because everything is really high this year,” Levy said about the show floor.
The organizers calculated that 50,000 guests visited this year’s show, with a record 5,500 guests attending the opening-night party held January 26. New additions to show programming included the "How Do You Live?" exhibit, where six local design firms created living spaces within a two-storey structure on the show floor.
Photo: Arash Moallemi
Large block letters clearly marked the Krups Stage, which hosted speakers throughout the weekend.
Photo: Arash Moallemi
Scaffolding remained exposed inside the Krups Stage, where the speaker series included the Azure Trade Talks and Conversations in Design.
Photo: Arash Moallemi
In the Prototype feature exhibit, items not yet in production were displayed on wooden loading pallets.
Arash Moallemi
Branding and design studio Sali Tabacchi incorporated cranes into the opening-night party invitations. Levy was inspired by Toronto itself, the fastest-growing condo city in North America with more than 80 cranes currently standing.
Photo: Sali Tabacchi
In Studio North, 60 independent Canadian and international designers showed off their products, including Contact Voyaging Co.
Photo: Emma McIntyre for BizBash
Show builds were higher than in years past.
Photo: BizBash
The "How Do You Live?" exhibition was inspired by condo living in Toronto. Six local designers each had a room within the two-storey structure. The complex itself was made out of stacked shipping containers and designed by Mazyar Mortazavi of TAS DesignBuild.
Photo: Arash Moallemi
In the "How Do You Live?" building, Mason created a space inspired by rituals in a kitchen and bathroom. Running water flowed across a kitchen table.
Photo: Emma McIntyre for BizBash
Quadrangle created a dining room inspired by the last supper for the "How Do You Live?" exhibit.
Photo: Emma McIntyre for BizBash
At the Art of Travel booth, luggage manufacturer Rimowa paired up with Flou furnishings to create the ultimate hotel room. The exhibit was designed by Sasha Josipovicz of Studio Pyramid.
Photo: Emma McIntyre for BizBash
Architecture firm UUfie paired up with DuPont Corian to create the Peacock chair. The simple booth was all white, and the intricate chairs threw shadows against the walls.
Photo: Emma McIntyre for BizBash
Flux's foldable, stackable chairs were on display at the entrance. A staffer demonstrated how to fold them in less than 10 seconds. The chairs were used as seating for a speaker series at the Krups Stage.
Photo: Emma McIntyre for BizBash
The Eurolite booth featured lighting displays within a wall of shelves.
Photo: Emma McIntyre for BizBash
Raw Design's StripTease installation used 1,300 individual strips of felt. In partnership with Christie, an interactive wall projected patterns and images of guests onto the hanging strips.
Photo: Courtesy of Christie Digital
Outside, IceCulture created replicas of iconic pieces for the new Design Icons exhibition. The sculptures were displayed on loading pallets.
Photo: Emma McIntyre for BizBash
