Josh Dunford
BattersbyHowat started informally as a design studio in 1996. Now an 11-person architectural practice, the office has a strong track record in both design excellence and the inclusive and considered nature of its design process. As partners and friends for 25 years, Battersby and Howat hold combined degrees that encompass architecture, landscape design and interior
design. This multidisciplinary approach gives the firm a distinct advantage to conceive of a project holistically, and reflects the receptive and collaborative nature of the studio’s culture. BattersbyHowat simultaneously considers the architectural resolution of a space or building, the material and physical occupation of an interior space with people, furnishings and
fixtures, and thoughtfully engages the surrounding landscape both on the level of its formal and ecological potential. Left to right: Tillie Kwan, Scott Lawrie, Cindy Lee, Fang Liu, Jessica McGillivray, Ben Tiffin, Heather Howat, David Battersby, Mona Tsui, Mary Cuk, Bettina Balcaen.
Based in Whitehorse, Yukon, Kobayashi + Zedda operates in fairly extreme climatic conditions. Working above the 60th parallel in a rugged and mountainous territory adjacent to Alaska, there are five caribou for every human and, in some areas, the ground is permanently frozen. With the lowest recorded temperature in Canada at –63°C, there is not much of a summer to speak of but the continuous daylight in June convinces residents otherwise. Aboriginal people comprise one-quarter of the population, and it has been only 60 years since the Alaska Highway connected the outside world to them. The firm realizes that a small community discourages specialization, and has been known to tackle any project as long as there exists the potential to do interesting work. Recently, in order to bring design to the neglected urban landscape of Whitehorse, KZA decided to lead by example by building and renovating its own buildings and to run a coffee house. Behind the bar, left to right: Antonio Zedda, Jack Kobayashi. Front row, left to right: Ryan McLennan, Sheelah Tolton, Cali Battersby, Susana Barr, Jackie Burgess, Chris Chevalier.
T B A | Thomas Balaban, architecte is an emerg ing Montreal architecture practice formed in 2009. During the past three years the studio has garnered local as well as national recognition through a growing list of awards, exhibitions, publications and competitions for projects that 14 canadian architect 12/12
thoughtfully search for a new contemporary expression within Montreal’s existing fabric and vernacular traditions. It is a critical practice that favours the omnivorous integration of art, technology and pedagogical research over the increasing fragmentation and specialization of
architectural practice. Left to right: Jennifer Thorogood, Julia Manaças, Thomas Balaban, Justin Boulanger. Naomi Frangos, Maxime Lefebvre, Elliott Sturtevant.