Photography by Stephanie Kretzschmer
The new ILAC International Language Academy of Canada campus replaces the stodgy institutional language school model with a playful visual identity defined by vibrant colours. which is used as both atmosphere and orientation tool that guides students through the six-floor vertical campus. Saturated tones animate lounges, breakout areas and circulation zones, however that energy is softened through a spatial language built around organic, rounded forms. Curved walls, circular motifs, and softened edges dissolve the rigidity typically associated with educational environments, encouraging a more fluid and informal experience of learning. Integrated planting and quiet pause areas further temper the visual dynamism, bringing some nature to the interiors and lessening the Technicolor Dream-campus effect. The result feels less like a conventional academic facility than a social landscape bursting with dynamism and optimism.
As appeared in the July/August 2026 Best of Canada Awards issue of Canadian Interiors magazine.
See all the 2026 Best of Canada Awards winners
