This project envisions a Music Center situated on the waterfront of Toronto. The design is articulated through a series of layered systems, each with distinct performative qualities, shaping the building’s character as visitors move fluidly through the space, immersing themselves in its dynamic environment. The layer system generates a collection of musical experiences, from the strong typology of the theaters characterized by a clean geometry, to the eroded geometry that conforms the spaces in between, research and education institutions, and knits the project to the surrounding context.  

Toronto's climate, defined by harsh winters and hot summers, plays a pivotal role in the building’s adaptive design. During summer, the outer layer functions as wind catchers, promoting natural ventilation. In winter, the building draws water from the lake, channeling it to the external colonnade where sprinklers disperse it; the water freezes, forming a protective ice skin. This seasonal transformation creates a building that evolves gradually over time.

This project marks the genesis of ideas we now synthesize in what we call the Architecture of ConFusion (mingling together). It explores buildings as mutating organisms, narrating their ontogenesis. The structure emerges from the interplay between endogenous forces (the genotype—sensitive flesh) and exogenous forces (bioclimatic and cultural contexts). The resulting phenotype is in a perpetual state of transformation. The ConFusion captures the intricate entanglement of these forces.

The building embodies time’s patina, absorbing and merging with its context until it ultimately becomes the context itself.