First Gulf

Toronto, ON

Services

Deliverables

Art Installation
Wayfinding
Illustration
Motion Graphics
Placemaking
Masterplanning
Signage

Imbuing life: an artistic reflection on growth

The Globe and Mail Centre is located in Toronto’s St. Lawrence neighbourhood, on one of the original ten city blocks of the Town of York. First Gulf commissioned Forge to create an art installation for their lobby that captures their brand’s essence of growth and enhances the tenant and visitor experience.

70 linear feet of continuous LED display adds interest and vivid colours to the lobby

Opening windows into new worlds

We created an array of LED columns across the 70-foot lobby wall, giving it the appearance of a series of growing ‘windows’ from the core of the building to the entrance. This extensive canvas creates two interactive artworks that attract attention while capturing and utilizing the constant pedestrian flow to affect the content.

The physcial array of screens contract/expand as you enter/exit the lobby

Escaping urban life through nature’s tranquility

‘Bloom’ invites the viewer to wander into its idyllic, hand-illustrated forest scenes to enjoy a moment of respite. It highlights the importance of maintaining a balance between nature and the urban sprawl so that we can continue to find solace within its warm embrace. With 72 scenes, including seasonal changes, varying flora, floating lanterns, creatures of the forest, and shifting light that emulates the time of day, it will never cease to have new things to discover.

All of Bloom’s custom made scenes change through the seasons and the lighting changes over the course of the day

Whimsical animal spirits are triggered by viewers stopping to take in the screens and represent current weather patterns

An artistic exploration of city and citizens’ dependencies

‘Interstitial Space’ explores the symbiotic relationship between the city and its citizens. The piece actively translates the momentum of the lobby’s pedestrians, adding colourful lines that weave throughout the illustrated cityscape, revealing depth and imbuing energy into the art. Over the day, eight distinct eras celebrate the history of Toronto, from its humble beginnings in 1793 to its current vibrant state.

Toronto’s skyline changes every hour, representing the growth of the city from its historic past to its vibrant present

More case studies

Constitution Square

Branding + Design
Digital Experiences
Environmental Graphic Design
Media Production

Deloitte Burlington

Environmental Graphic Design

Four Seasons

Environmental Graphic Design

Constitution Square

Services

Deliverables

Logo
Brand Guide
Illustration
Hoarding
Brochure
Motion Graphics
Social Media
Kiosk
Signage
Wayfinding
Art Installation
Marketing Materials
Placemaking
Masterplanning
Video Production
Stationery
Website

Reimagining a workplace experience for a new era

Constitution Square is an upscale office complex in the west end of downtown Ottawa, Ontario. It is an amenity-rich space that promotes connectivity and fosters community while conveying a sense of pride in supporting the ever-changing workplace experience. The Canderel team looked to Forge to bring this vision of a holistic workplace to life through brand, physical and digital signage, interactive displays, and digital public art.

A playful logo for a serious office building

Logo inspired by the three towers of the building and a simple colour palette to support the brand

Ownable typography to define all communications

Comprehensive brand guide for consistent brand application

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Pellentesque nisi arcu, consequat nec imperdiet vitae, gravida at ipsum. Ut lacinia elit eget mi fermentum.

Communicating an evolution to a modern audience

The newly established brand adds a sense of liveliness and forward-thinking reflected in the building’s vision—adopting a more casual tone of voice and a visual identity that is modern, friendly and relatable.

Custom illustrations to communicate all things about the brand

Bold hoarding to build suspense during construction

Digital brochure for sales team

Social media and poster campaign to promote the changes

Establishing a strong sense of community and space

Our team developed design solutions that ensured an intuitive understanding of the connectivity of the three towers throughout the newly renovated concourse. The foremost opportunity was to create a strong sense of place and clear awareness of which of the three towers you were in, regardless of which entrance was used.

Interactive building directory integrated into signage program

Bold signage to identify each of the three towers

Consistent signage application throughout the entire building complex

Art as a reflection of brand values

At the heart of each building’s lobby is a 4-sided LED column featuring a series of custom-crafted artwork that ties directly into the brand’s themes of Gather, Grow, Connect, Evolve. The three pillars create a symmetry between the buildings as you walk the concourse, and their impressive presence infuses the space with a sense of palpable energy and vivid life. They further underpin Canderel’s desire to make these public common areas a pleasant place to work and dwell.