Toronto is becoming a global destination. It has an eclectic culture and an array of museums, restaurants, parks, churches and architecture. The city’s center is a hub of activity, but you can walk ten minutes outside of the center and find eyefuls of Toronto modern architecture at its very best.

The 40R Laneway House by superkul architects:

About the home:

Located on a 40’x18’ lot, it is built to the property lines on 3 sides, with 2’ to spare on the fourth. Current zoning regulations don’t allow for additional openings in any of the walls, so the design strategy was to draw additional light, air and views from above. A light shaft topped by skylights runs the length of the west wall of the building, broken only by a courtyard on the second floor. The shaft brings light to the ground floor, and provides passive ventilation. On the second floor, a glass and wood wrapped courtyard separates the two bedrooms. From the courtyard, with its primary view to the sky, there is a small stair up to a roof garden.

Once a blacksmith’s shop, then a horse shed and later an artist’s apartment and studio, this laneway building in Toronto was purchased by its current owners in 2006. Interested both in the character of the building and smaller footprint living, they wanted to convert it into single-family residence—while retaining as much of the character of the existing building as possible.

This entry was posted on Monday, May 18th, 2009 at 12:04 pm and is filed under Contemporary Homes, Featured Architect, Featured Modern City, Modern Architects, Modern Design, Toronto Architecture, modern architecture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.