Kongats Architects is gaining a national reputation for the innovation they bring to a wide range of important educational, cultural and public institutions. In addition to the University of Toronto’s Mississauga Academy of Medicine, current projects include Centennial College’s Athletic and Wellness Centre, Lambton Art Gallery in Sarnia, and the Foundry District Energy Centre for Waterfront Toronto. The design work of the firm is rational and strictly edited to ensure the projects’ fundamental ambitions are never compromised while architecturally creating exceptional experiences for daily life. Offering an exceptional experience for daily life also means living in sync with our environment. “Green building” is an evident characteristic of the firm’s built projects and feasibility studies, reinforced by their ongoing research into the use of self-sustaining materials and building systems, and by an inventiveness in the design of the exterior building skin. The firm’s work has been honoured with several awards including a Canadian Architect Award of Excellence for Hespeler Library. In 2006, the firm was nominated for the prestigious New York Architectural League’s Emerging Voices Prize. Their work has been featured extensively in various publications and has been exhibited in Canada and abroad. Clockwise from top left: Alar Kongats, Danielle Lam-Kulczak, Philip Toms, Sukie Leung, Alessia Soppelsa, David Sasaki. Missing from photo: Dieter Janssen, Andrea Ling, Derek McCallum, Tyler Walker, Steven Addeo, Tymea Sarkozy.
In 1995, Eric Pelletier co-founded Croft Pelletier architectes, where he evolved his skills as an architect through a variety of cultural and institutional projects, many of which have won awards. Some of the more significant buildings include the Charlesbourg Library, the Gaspésie Museum and the Montreal Planetarium. His work has been published widely, both in Quebec and Canada, as well as internationally. In 2009, Pelletier established his own architectural practice, Eric Pelletier architectes (EPA), taking with him the same dynamic and passionate team. The firm has since worked on numerous projects with a broad scope, including architecture, interior design, urban design, landscape design, furniture, exhibition and stage design, and even civil engineering. Recently, the firm received an honourable mention for their proposal for a new open-air amphitheatre in Trois-Rivières, the subject of an open competition. Left to right: Eric Pelletier, Amélie Turgeon, Annie Martineau. Cardinal Hardy (CHA) was founded in 1986 by Michel Hardy and Aurèle Cardinal. Led by seven partners, the firm currently employs 70 full-time employees, including 36 architects, nine landscape architects and six urban designers, many with LEED accreditation. Five professionals teach at the university level in the field of urban design and landscape architecture. For the past several years, Cardinal Hardy has been most actively engaged in the rebirth of the Montreal waterfront. The success of the Old Port of Montreal, Cité du Multimédia, Quartier Concordia, and residential communities in Old Montreal and on the Lachine Canal—are all the result of their commitment and planning efforts. The office specializes in landscape architecture, urban studies, restoration and recycling of historical sites and buildings, transportation, mixed-use projects and housing. As the firm strongly believes that successful planning is the product of teamwork and the collaborative effort of all professionals, they are particularly well-known for a multidisciplinary approach and for their rigour in urban planning. Cardinal Hardy has been recognized by numerous awards, such as National and Regional Merit
Awards from the Canadian Landscape Architecture Association, an Honour Award for the Waterfront Center in Washington, a Governor General’s Award for architecture, and a Prix d’excellence from the Ordre des Architectes du Québec. Recently, the firm won the architecture competition for Les Bassins du Nouveau Havre, a master plan proposal of a sustainable mixed-use project for the old Canada Post site on the Lachine Canal. Les Architectes Labonté Marcil was founded in 1986. Today, its two founding partners—Pierre Labonté and Jean Marcil—lead the 14-person firm. Their work focuses primarily on the cultural and institutional sectors, along with many heritage restoration projects. Labonté Marcil is known for its 12/10 canadian architect
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