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Heather Dubbeldam

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Heather Dubbeldam, OAA, FRAIC, LEED AP, WELL AP is a Canadian architect based in Toronto. She received the 2016 Prix de Rome in Architecture for her research on sustainable housing. In 2003, Dubbeldam founded Dubbeldam Architecture + Design a midsized multidisciplinary firm. Prior to starting her own firm, she worked for Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg (KPMB), where she gained her architectural license. Beyond architectural practice, Dubbeldam contributes to the architectural community as a volunteer on various boards. These boards include: Building Equality in Architecture Toronto (BEAT), Twenty + Change, and the Design Industry Advisory Committee (DIAC). Her volunteering also includes affiliations with multiple architectural schools as a critic and advisory council member. In 2024, Heather was selected by the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) to receive the King Charles III Coronation Medal for Architecture, recognizing her contributions to the profession and the community.

History

Career

After completing her studies at Carleton University’s School of Architecture, Dubbeldam spent seven years at KPMB before establishing her multidisciplinary studio in Toronto. Her early work for the Gladstone Hotel project in 2005 was the first to gain notice in the press. For the hotel she designed a room in her individual style alongside 15 other artists and designers responsible for their own spaces respectively. In 2008, her firm received the Ontario Association of Architects Best Emerging Practice award.

Dubbeldam's most awarded residential projects include Bunkie on the Hill, Bata Shoe Factory, Through House, Contrast House, and Skygarden House. Additionally, she has designed larger award winning commercial projects such as the headquarters for Azure and Slack. Sustainability has remained a consistent focus throughout her career and her firm actively engages in ongoing research focused on sustainable building practices. This focus on sustainability played a role in her 2016 Prix de Rome win. With the $50,000 prize, she furthered her research on energy-efficient housing in Germany and Scandinavia, contributing to the advancement of passivhaus, net-zero energy homes, and regenerative design. This recognition as one of “Canada's oldest and most prestigious architectural prizes” provided support for Dubbeldam's work, bringing importance to sustainability discourse and fostering progress within the profession.

Dubbeldam's firm has earned over 100 awards that acknowledge their pursuit of design excellence and sustainable design, including the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) 2024 Architectural Practice Award.

Notable projects

Bunkie on the Hill (Muskoka, 2023)

A modern interpretation of the classic A-frame cabin. The split roof design comprises two intersecting gables articulated by geometric windows. The 93-square-metre cabin is lifted above grade by an insulated concrete form (ICF) foundation, minimizing the amount of concrete necessary and eliminating the need for blasting of the bedrock on site. A finalist at the World Architecture Festival (WAF), Heather traveled to Singapore in November 2024 to present Bunkie on the Hill to an international panel of judges.

Project Awards

  • Grands Prix du Design Awards, 2024 - Gold Award
  • The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design, 2024 - Future House Award
  • Architizer A+ Awards, Private House, 2024 - Popular Choice

Bata Shoe Factory (Batawa, 2022)

This redevelopment of a former Bata Shoe Company factory in Batawa, Ontario, was undertaken by Toronto architects BDP Quadrangle and Dubbeldam Architecture. “This project is a model for environmental and social sustainability and increased housing density in a rural setting with the lightest impact on the environment,” Dubbeldam said. “The renovated factory now stands to once again become a beacon within the town, focused on a sustainable future.”

Project awards

  • AIA International Awards, 2024 - Merit Award for Architecture
  • Canadian Green Building Awards - Winner
  • Active House Awards - Winner, Transforming Active Spaces

Skygarden House (Toronto, 2015)

One of Dubbeldam's most awarded projects is Skygarden House, completed in Toronto in 2015. This architectural work integrates sustainable features while maintaining a clean aesthetic. The project garnered praise for Dubbeldam's intentional design approach, which blended sustainability with contemporary style, a rare occurrence during a time when eco-friendly products often compromised visual appeal.

Project Awards

Through House (Toronto)

The Through House is an architectural work by Dubbeldam Architecture + Design to renovate a 128 year old house in a crowded downtown neighbourhood. Renovation projects like this attempt to retrofit and adapt older buildings to meet modern Eco-friendly standards, as a strategy is greatly reduces the carbon footprint of a project as compared to the development of a new building. The projects design language focuses on the repeated use of materials on the exterior and interior of the home, maintaining the intention of the design as blending these experiences together.

Project Awards

  • Canadian Green Building Award
  • Ontario Association of Architects Award - Design Excellence
  • Ontario Association of Architects Award - People's Choice
  • Azure Az Award - Award of Merit
  • Azure Az Award - People's Choice
  • Re-Thinking the Future Awards - Residential Interior

Azure Office (Toronto)

Originally an early 20th century transformer factory, Dubbeldam Architecture + Design reworked the building into the new Azure head office. At 5,600 square feet over two levels the office is of a relatively modest scale, hosting an open plan office for 26 workstations alongside meeting rooms and offices. The renovation of the factory building into the Azure headquarters earned the firm the Architecture Masterprize for Office Design. The award committee describes the project as follows:

Throughout, the factory’s original industrial quality has been preserved and accentuated with bold colours and furniture, instilling an authenticity to the space while imbuing it with a creative and vibrant energy. Boasting double height windows, a split-level mezzanine layout, and an abundance of natural light, it is an ideal setting for the creative enterprise it now houses.

References

  1. RAIC (July 20, 2016). "Dubbeldam Architecture + Design awarded prestigious Professional Prix de Rome in Architecture for research in sustainable housing" (PDF). The Next Green Innovation in Sustainable Design. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  2. "Studio". Dubbeldam Inc. Retrieved 2023-07-19.
  3. ^ Jen, Leslie (2021). Canadian Architecture: Evolving a Cultural Identity. Vancouver: Figure 1 Publishing. pp. 76–81.
  4. "Heather Dubbeldam". BEAT. 2019-10-08. Retrieved 2023-07-19.
  5. Mazzucco, Lucy (2024-09-10). "RAIC Names 30 Members for the King Charles III Coronation Medal". Canadian Architect. Retrieved 2024-12-02.
  6. MacKeen, Erin (Fall 2005). "Making Room at the Gladstone Hotel" (PDF). 401 Richmond: 1.
  7. ^ Sheppard, Lola (2009). Twenty + Change: Emerging Canadian Design Practices 02. Riverside Architectural Press.
  8. officebureau (2016-07-21). "Dubbeldam Architecture + Design Awarded the Prix de Rome". Azure Magazine. Retrieved 2023-07-19.
  9. Moore, Shannon (2016-07-20). "Canada Council for the Arts announces architecture prize winners". Canadian Architect. Retrieved 2023-07-19.
  10. "How designer Heather Dubbeldam plans to change Canada's conversation about sustainable housing". The Globe and Mail. 2016-08-05. Retrieved 2023-07-19.
  11. News, Shawn Adams published in (2024-10-01). "Bunkie on The Hill is a cosy Canadian cottage full of charm". wallpaper.com. Retrieved 2024-12-02. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  12. Jackson, Kendra (2023-10-26). "This Muskoka Bunkie is a Modern Riff on the Traditional A-Frame". Azure Magazine. Retrieved 2024-12-02.
  13. Metropolis. "World Architecture Festival 2024 - Home Page". worldarchitecturefestival.com. Retrieved 2024-12-02.
  14. "Bunkie on the Hill". INT Design. Retrieved 2024-12-02.
  15. News, Global Design (2024-09-27). "Global Design News and The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design reveal the 2024 Future House Awards, recognizing leading design professionals who are shaping the residences of tomorrow". Global Design News. Retrieved 2024-12-02. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  16. "2024 Typology Winners - Architizer A+Awards". winners.architizer.com. Retrieved 2024-12-04.
  17. Novakovic, Stefan (2021-04-30). "Bata-Ville: A Shoe Company's Quest for Global Utopia". Azure Magazine. Retrieved 2024-12-04.
  18. "A Historic Shoe Factory Serves as a Model for Environmental and Social Sustainability". Metropolis. Retrieved 2024-12-04.
  19. "An Eco-Friendly Home Doesn't Have to Look Like a Spaceship". Architectural Digest. 2017-07-13. Retrieved 2023-07-19.
  20. "StackPath". www.oaa.on.ca. Retrieved 2023-07-19.
  21. Future, Rethinking The (2016-02-17). "Through House | Dubbeldam Architecture + Design". RTF | Rethinking The Future. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  22. Peters, Terri (September 2016). "Architectural Interventions For Social Sustainability: The Renovation Of Modern Housing". Conference: Sustainable Built Environment: 1–6 – via ResearchGate.
  23. "Through House / Dubbeldam Architecture + Design". ArchDaily. 2015-03-06. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  24. "Azure Office | Dubbeldam Architecture + Design". ArchiDiaries. Retrieved 2023-07-21.
  25. ^ "Azure Office". architectureprize.com. Retrieved 2023-07-21.
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