Cristal ROM - canon 20d w/10-20

Sorry for the lack of posts recently, I just moved back to Canada.

This is the new Michael Lee Chin 'Crystal' extension to the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. It's still not finished but I can see why people are so excited about it. Toronto has seen a drop in visitors the last few years and it's hoped that this building will help energise the city and reverse the decline in visitors.

I like the concept of the building, it almost seems to be lurching out of the ground and absorbing the original museum building. What I don't like so much are the materials used, the stripy cladding and the 'Mondrian-style' windows look very 80s to me. I find myself wishing the whole building were covered in glass, as the name suggests it would be. Still, I think it will do the job, there's already a palpable buzz in the city and other projects are afoot, like Gehry's 'Transformation' of the Art Gallery of Ontario. It's definitely an interesting time to be in Toronto.

Shot of the day
Cornershots

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Comments

  • Matej

    As far as I've heard, it was supposed to be all glass. But once they realized that the musuem had to be temperature controlled, and that it snows in Toronto quite a bit (and glass is not the best material to support several feet of snow), they changed the materials.

    I have to say I'm not a fan of the design, but at least I was intrigued by the crystal idea. Now I think it looks unfinished and, quite frankly, like something of a monstrosity.

    2007-07-11

  • Arieh Singer

    Great perspective on this shot!

    2007-07-11

  • not much

    This is an interesting shot. Is this a stiched photo or just a wide angle? What lense did you use.

    2007-07-11

  • Miles

    Matej, that's interesting, I heard they had the same problem with the French national library and used wooden boards. It really does look like the cladding was a second thought here. Still, just because something is clad in glass (or some other, more perdurable, translucent material) doesn't mean that the light has to come in, a second, opaque, skin under the surface could deal with temperature and light control with spaces for windows as normal. I imagine that cost was a big factor in this compromise.

    Not Much, this is two exposures merged manually in photoshop. It's only a small increase in width but I couldn't step back (into traffic) far enough to get as much of the scene as I wanted in the shot. It's shot with the Sigma 10-20mm carrying a polarising filter.

    2007-07-11

  • owen

    Wonderful. I definitely had to view the large version of this. Cracking architecture. I love all the angles and the comparison with the older structure.

    2007-07-11

  • MountainMan

    cool structure, i wonder if the architects ever spoke with the architects on denvers new museum extension, i see some similarities.

    http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2006/10/12/arts/12libe_CA0.600.jpg

    2007-07-11

  • Florian

    cool perspektice and wonderful clear shot!

    2007-07-11

  • Gary

    stunning photo and architecture

    2007-07-11

  • Ali

    Incredibly clear image, very beautiful!

    2007-07-11

  • payam

    i think that if it wasn't for the man sitting slanted on the right side of the frame this photo would be very normal, but I love the parallel connection between the building and the person. great composition!

    2007-07-11

  • peter

    I love the wiiiide angle - it just sweeps you right in.

    2007-07-11

  • BobC

    That really is quite a surreal shot - with those crazy angles it looks like something out of a funhouse or a dream. Good processing too!

    2007-07-11

  • Maarten

    great shot ! suppose this was a fish-eye shot ?

    2007-07-11

  • Jason

    wow. I've seen quite a lot of shots of this recently, but I really think this is one of the coolest. The extreme wide angle really adds a dimension to an already impressive piece of architecture.

    2007-07-11

  • thomas mueller

    excellent shot and i like the abstractness of the building. it really seems like it blurt out of the ground. brilliant!

    2007-07-12

  • eduardo

    Sólo para decir que me agrada tu regreso para disfrutar de fotografías como esta.

    Saludos

    2007-07-12

  • Dave

    Great angles and perspective, nice colours too. An interesting picture.

    2007-07-12

  • adam

    Yes, I think the cost was another reason for the compromises in the final result.

    If I saw this in another city I would probably like it more, but knowing the history of the site (the old courtyard garden from when I was a kid, and the previous terrace extension which I quite liked, and which at least saved some of the green space) and the compromises made to the original concept I have mixed feelings at best. I was up there myself yesterday and I thought that all that cement blending into the grey building made that stretch of Bloor feel kind of bleak.

    I did like the interior, when it was open to the public to wander around the week after the official opening.

    That said this is one of the best photos I've seen of the building.

    The Denver museum is interesting... I looked it up and it's also by Daniel Libeskind.

    2007-07-12

  • Jordan

    So you /are/ back in town!

    This is a great rendering of the Crystal. It makes me want to actually go through and scan the pics I took inside it. I have mixed feelings about it so far -- I think it'll look most interesting when it is full of exhibits and the lighting is more subtle or "moulded".

    2007-07-12

  • potty

    are they still building? hasn't it been almost ten years in the making?

    2007-07-13

  • riesenriel

    Stunning architecture! You're right, it seems like it cames out of the ground.

    2007-07-13

  • milou

    Certainly a thought provoking structure. Inclusion of the peeps give a sense of scale.

    2007-07-15

  • mnemospection photographie noir et blanc

    whaou... what's structure!

    2007-07-15