A talk with Sandra Ainsley

Peter Bremers’ Icebergs and Paraphenalia, photo courtesy of sandraainsleygallery.com

“Sandra Ainsley established her first gallery in Hazelton Lanes in Toronto in 1984, and has since established herself as a leading dealer on the global market. In early 2002, Sandra was approached by developers interested in reconstructing the old Gooderham and Wort’s Whiskey Distillery. This 10,000 square foot space is now home to one of the finest collections of glass art in the world. 1

Susan Rankin’s Garden Columns (stacked), photo courtesy of sandraainsleygallery.com

In January, I had the opportunity to speak with Sandra Ainsley as a part of my Entrepreneurial Leadership course at McGill University, a course where prominent Canadian leaders from diverse fields are invited to share their life experiences. Below are my thoughts on her visit.

Dale Chihuly’s Red Chandelier, photo courtesy of sandraainsleygallery.com

Sandra Ainsley is many things. Owner of an internationally renowned glass gallery, mother to three children, recognized entrepreneur, friend of Dale Chihuley. Even so, describing Sandra Ainsley in one word is easy.

I would choose genuine.

neat furniture + booths at ids08

some highlights from this year’s show:

clever.

A booth made entirely from flatten-able paper boxes!

ids 2008 collaborations

The four ‘collaborations‘ were designed by Toronto firms Teeple Architects, KPMB, Johnson Chou, and Giannone & Associates. Each team was allowed to use just one material for the construction of a concept from floor to ceiling.

Contours, Teeple Architects and Willis, using Dupont Corian

KPMB Architects, Taproot, & Tron-X, using Smith and Fong PLYBOO

anechoic chambers

Anechoic means literally a room without echo. They are used in acoustics to test in free field conditions. These chambers produce some of the wackiest spaces… like this one where the man looks like he’s floating in space.

producing buildings with 3d printers

Lattice Archipelogics, from Servo design

David Erdman last week gave a talk about his work and a few of the overarching themes in his current practice David Clovers, and his previous one, Servo. The three most important were: designing with the computer, making complex forms using machinery, and modularity.

Dark Places exhibition at the Santa Monica Museum of Art, photograph from e-flux

Nike Geneology of Speed exhibition, photograph from AIGA Design Archives

It makes me wonder, will we one day print off our houses in 3d printers? Will building a house be as simple as shipping the large printer anywhere around the city, and printing off the custom-designed building?

Already, architects such as Francois Roche from R&Sie(n) have proposed entire museums built using CNC milling machines. This Swiss Ice Museum will be constructed on site, slice-by-slice, with a special 5-axis CNC machine that can work a 5 x 40 meter area.

Swiss Ice Museum, Image courtesy of R&Sie(n) studios

It’s only a matter of time before the most bizarre creations that can be dreamed up with the click of a mouse are available for order over the internet!

More:

David Erdman’s Columbia University Thesis

new ROM crystal

The new Royal Ontario Museum is finally open! I visited the museum when it was on display as an architecture piece only, without the galleries installed, and the spaces inside are breathtaking. While there are many in the city who have decried the building as an assault on Bloor St. W. and the crystal’s gesture of jutting as imposing on the public space, I believe it is a much needed addition to Toronto’s cityscape.