Educational Archives - VAN ELSLANDER + ASSOCIATES ARCHITECTS INC.

March 18, 2025

UTM Chemical Lab

UTM Chemical Lab V+A provided architectural services for the expansion and renovation upgrades to a University of Toronto Mississauga chemical laboratory to optimize experimentation. This lab consisted of two smaller and dated laboratory spaces, which were renovated to create a single CL2 Chemical Sensors wet lab. V+A worked closely with the user to design a functional, safe and pleasing environment, while coordinating the extensive technical requirements of the lab equipment with the engineering consultants. ...

May 21, 2019

by vearchitects

Gull Lake Survey Camp

[vc_row][vc_column][qodef_custom_font font_family="Montserrat" font_size="24" line_height="34" font_weight="700" letter_spacing="-0.4" text_align="left" content_custom_font="Gull Lake Survey Camp" color="#222222"][vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text] [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Gull Lake Survey Camp is to be the University of Toronto's latest addition to their survey camp for engineering students. Gull Lake has been used by the University of Toronto to train engineering students for over a century. U of T came to V+A Architects to design a new bunkhouse to replace their existing and aging building. V+A led the team to design the project, secure approvals with various stakeholders, and provided construction administration. Special attention was paid to involve various stakeholders including past alumni, First Nations groups, the nearby town of Minden, and many others. This is reflected in the new design's form and materiality. Custom signage was created to honour donors to the project, and a First Nations artist was commissioned to create artwork for the common area. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]...

March 23, 2021

by vearchitects

UTM Principal’s Office

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css=".vc_custom_1560885133547{background-color: #ffffff !important;}"][vc_empty_space][qodef_custom_font font_family="Montserrat" font_size="24" line_height="34" font_weight="700" letter_spacing="-0.4" text_align="left" content_custom_font="UTM Principal's Office" color="#222222"][vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text] This interior renovation at the University of Toronto's Mississauga campus involved the full redesign of approximately 300 square metres of space. The project consists of the main administrative office suite, containing the offices of the CAO, Vice President and Principal, as well as conference rooms, meeting rooms, private offices, reception area, and a kitchenette. [vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text] This project maximizes space utilization to accommodate additional staff and meeting spaces, which were consequently updated with the latest audio visual equipment. The client's desires to improve the acoustical separation and performance of each of the rooms and increase physical security are achieved by the redesign, while simultaneously creating a welcoming space that visually connected to the building interior. [vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text] Modern and elegant finishes are incorporated into the design of the interior renovation, including a felt baffle ceiling, white oak millwork, and acoustic...

May 20, 2019

by vearchitects

New College Plaza

[vc_row][vc_column][qodef_custom_font font_family="Montserrat" font_size="24" line_height="34" font_weight="700" letter_spacing="-0.4" text_align="left" content_custom_font="New College Plaza" color="#222222"][vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text] By: Terence Van Elslander New College Alumni & Friends Magazine, 50th Anniversary Edition Published February 2013 "New College is best approached from the centre of the U of T campus. I recently did so by starting at Massey College, wandering through University College and Knox College, and ending up at New College – still fresh, and singularly not-Gothic. Its buildings are nonetheless college buildings, and they share many common characteristics with other college buildings. Descended from the medieval cloister, this building type has two faces: an inward and an outward – one relating to the buildings’ setting, the other creating a privileged world. It is this dual nature of the college building, simultaneously public and private, that New College expresses so well. College courtyards form a sense of community and identity. They are reflective and contemplative spaces which always contain natural elements; when...

December 12, 2017

by vearchitects

University of Toronto Drone Lab

[vc_row][vc_column][qodef_custom_font font_family="Montserrat" font_size="24" line_height="34" font_weight="700" letter_spacing="-0.4" text_align="left" content_custom_font="University of Toronto Drone Lab" color="#222222"][vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text]Located in the recently built Myhal Centre, the Drone and Robotics Lab is a state of the art facility at the University of Toronto where experimental robotics are tested. The facility provides a flexible and demonstrative space for the research, testing and examination of drones and land-based robots. The lab is equipped with a fully retractable motorized grid system, allowing users to easily adjust and reposition motion capture cameras and lighting. Four large shackles are mounted to the underside of the slab, supporting the chain driven motors that raise and lower the aluminum truss. Drone safety netting separates the drone flying zone from the rest of the lab space. A sloped surface along the existing perimeter beam eliminates inaccessible areas where drones could become trapped. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]...

August 12, 2017

by vearchitects

Kelly Library Conservation Studio

July 19, 2017

by vearchitects

Rock Fracture Laboratory

[vc_row][vc_column][qodef_custom_font font_family="Montserrat" font_size="24" line_height="34" font_weight="700" letter_spacing="-0.4" text_align="left" content_custom_font="Rock Fracture Laboratory" color="#222222"][vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text] This project included renovation work for the University of Toronto’s Department of Engineering. The existing structures laboratory was transformed to include a new Rock Fracture Dynamics Laboratory, housing a $1.2 million rock fracture testing bed, seminar and meeting space, research stations and a dedicated server room. The reworking of the existing laboratory building to create a new facility also answered the department chairman’s need to present a visible image of engineering research to prospective donors and students. The use of transparent materials produce an exciting overlap of space and use. It allows research to be a visible activity within the faculty and to display both pure and applied research as it happens. The demanding technical requirements of this project included the coordination of digital and electrical servicing to enable remote destructive testing and monitoring of material samples. A new foundation was...

September 12, 2017

by vearchitects

Sidney Smith Cafe

[vc_row][vc_column][qodef_custom_font font_family="Montserrat" font_size="24" line_height="34" font_weight="700" letter_spacing="-0.4" text_align="left" content_custom_font="Sidney Smith Cafe" color="#222222"][vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text] The Sidney Smith Café, situated in Sidney Smith Hall on the University of Toronto St.George Campus, has served students for many years as an eatery and gathering space. Renovations were made to accommodate a request for a more comfortable and functional space. As a construction project this involved revising servery equipment layouts, as well reviewing lighting conditions and the architectural quality of the space. Existing problems included obstructed views and disorienting and unclear circulation as well as outdated millwork. Our design approach was to provide a simple and cohesive space to eliminate visual barriers and obstructions, and to provide a variety of student use spaces. Comfort was addressed with attractive materials and brighter lighting as well as through the articulation of the space into different areas of use: Café, Lounge and Hub. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]...

July 13, 2017

by vearchitects

New College Student Council Office

[vc_row][vc_column][qodef_custom_font font_family="Montserrat" font_size="24" line_height="34" font_weight="700" letter_spacing="-0.4" text_align="left" content_custom_font="New College Student Council Office" color="#222222"][vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text] The New College Student Council renovation project involved the reprogramming of the two-storey entrance atrium at the New College Student Residence Building, and the transformation of existing individual offices at entry level into an open concept office for the New College Student Council. This remodel accommodates individual work spaces, a meeting area and a lounge. The transformation was part of an initiative to connect and enliven public space within New College and to provide a versatile gathering area for new and existing social events. The strategic design introduces a glazed wall along the existing atrium, which visually connects the council area activities with activities in the atrium. A defining frame around the glass provides a distinctive identity to the space, and creates an inviting threshold to the student council. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]...

July 13, 2017

by vearchitects

IFP Classrooms

[vc_row][vc_column][qodef_custom_font font_family="Montserrat" font_size="24" line_height="34" font_weight="700" letter_spacing="-0.4" text_align="left" content_custom_font="IFP Classrooms" color="#222222"][vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text] The renovation at Wetmore Hall included the establishment of an architectural identity for the New International Foundation Program. The University wanted the design of the classrooms to display a unique character, which would stand out and identify the IFP Classroom area. The renovation accommodates seven classrooms within 450 square metres. Though the space was located in the basement of Wetmore Hall, the existing exterior band of windows allowed for the opportunity to bring daylight into the classrooms. The use of floor-to-ceiling glass planes allows available daylight to reach each classroom; each pane of glass is treated with its own band of colour. The detailing of the doors with large glass transoms also characterize the assembly as classrooms that make up the IFP, while the stepped configuration of the classrooms capitalizes on the hallway as a place of meeting and interaction. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]...

July 12, 2017

by vearchitects

UTM Teaching Lab

[vc_row][vc_column][qodef_custom_font font_family="Montserrat" font_size="24" line_height="34" font_weight="700" letter_spacing="-0.4" text_align="left" content_custom_font="UTM Teaching Lab" color="#222222"][vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text] V+A completed a phased renovation on the second floor of University of Toronto Mississauga’s W.G. Davis Building. Outdated and inefficient laboratory spaces were transformed into shared teaching labs to be utilized by the faculties of Earth Sciences, Anthropology, Geography, Psychology, Forensic Science and Biology, in order to support undergraduate research initiatives. The design introduced flexible furniture layouts to accommodate a wide range of uses by different faculties for both individual study and collaborative exercises. Versatile storage solutions were specifically designed to meet equipment requirements. Multimedia requirements for different configurations were mounted and hung in order to maximize the efficiency of each room. Additionally, the space was required to support a wide variety of experiments, which require additional power and exhaust. Specialty Thermostat & HVAC systems were installed in each lab in order to mitigate noise and vibrations, without sacrificing adequate...

July 12, 2017

by vearchitects

Chemistry and Physical Sciences Lab

July 12, 2017

by vearchitects

New College Student Centre

[vc_row][vc_column][qodef_custom_font font_family="Montserrat" font_size="24" line_height="34" font_weight="700" letter_spacing="-0.4" text_align="left" content_custom_font="New College Student Centre" color="#222222"][vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text] The New College Student Offices project involved renovating an existing 330 square meter area in the lower level of Wilson Hall to accommodate the needs of the college for student club offices. The design reflects the idea of community, and represents the wide range of interests of New College. The design for the offices provides a community for the individual clubs. They are unified in their modular form yet vary in colour, to give each club office an identity. The colour, along with the slight shift in office plans, offers a sense of playfulness to the space. The shift in planes also provides fluidity to circulation and leaves pockets of unprogrammed space for meeting. The program included 17 club offices, a large meeting room, and a student kitchenette and lounge space. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]...

November 27, 2015

by vearchitects

IFP Offices

[vc_row][vc_column][qodef_custom_font font_family="Montserrat" font_size="24" line_height="34" font_weight="700" letter_spacing="-0.4" text_align="left" content_custom_font="IFP Office Expansion" color="#222222"][vc_empty_space height="20px"][vc_column_text] The new IFP faculty office renovation included the establishment of an architectural identity for the new International Foundation Program. The 130 square meter area of alteration had to accommodate an open office area, two private offices, a kitchenette, a meeting room, as well as a reception and copy area. The space was designed to accommodate administrative tasks, as well as personal student-faculty meetings. The concept for the design was to maximize the amount of natural light, while creating a functional and comfortable environment. The entrance door was replaced with a full height glazed door and sidelight to allow light to flow through the entrance, and expose the existing brick wall creating a warm and welcoming entrance threshold to the offices. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]...