Student design team selected for Winter Stations 2025
Peak, a proposal by a Waterloo Architecture student design team has been selected for Winter Stations 2025.
The members of the design team Anita Hu, Catherine Zheng, Isaac Walsh, Jason Cai, Nadine Hijazi and Ricardo Espinoza developed the project with faculty supervisor, Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream Fiona Lim Tung.
Project description: "Emerging from the soft and organic beachscape are angular peaks that frame perspectives and form pathways. Consisting of repeating structures of select shapes and sizes, Peak is an interactive installation that visually contrasts the existing site and offers refuge from the cold winter environment. The design of the structure appears to shift and settle with the ground as the sand moves and collects within the alcoves and sloped surfaces from the wind. Peak welcomes contemplation and new beginnings, it offers opportunities for individuals to freely explore and admire the surrounding natural landscape and intends to give agency to the ever changing and unpredictable conditions of the site."
Design teams were given the theme of Dawn for 2025. Dawn marks the beginning of a new era for Winter Stations as it steps into its 11th year, symbolizing a fresh chapter in its creative journey. Just as the first light of morning breaks through the darkness, the exhibition will explore the moments of profound change that redefine and shape our existence, highlighting the delicate process of shedding old layers to emerge as something new. Dawn embraces the evolving self and the endless possibilities of change and transition, whether it be personal, natural, or spiritual, capturing the raw beauty of growth and renewal.
Dawn represents the shift from night to day, and this year, designers are invited to explore how Winter Stations can evolve, and to consider the future of the exhibition and its relationship with the public and the environment. Through this lens, Dawn challenges designers to explore how Winter Stations can adapt, grow, and metamorphose in the coming years, shaping the urban landscape in imaginative and innovative ways.
Winter Stations is a single-stage international design competition held annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Participants are tasked with designing temporary winter art installations which incorporate existing lifeguard towers spaced strategically across the city’s Kew and Woodbine beaches. The structures (not in use in the wintertime) are considered visual anchor points for the installations. The installations will be on view for six weeks beginning February 2025.