Toronto’s DesignTO 2025 highlights – design and art to see across the city

The organizers behind DesignTO (pronounced design tee-oh) are well aware the festival (this year, 24 January to 2 February) falls in the midst of Toronto’s coldest, snowiest stretch. The timing is entirely planned: January isn’t just frigid, it’s also quiet with little to do. All the more reason, they say, to inject energy and joy and community into the Canadian winter.

Now in its 15th year, the once grassroots endeavour – which started with just seven exhibitions and a lofty dream to bring Toronto’s insular studio community into the open – now has over 100 exhibitors large and small. From art displays in shop windows to panel discussions with boldfaced designers and immersive installations in top-notch studios, the festival makes the most of ten full days.

One moment you’re browsing sculptural works at a proper gallery within Yabu Pushelberg’s white-walled office, and the next, you’re eyeing painted skateboards on the wall of a local laundromat – so long as you brave the cold, you’ll find art most everywhere.

Routinely overlooked, the design scene in and around Toronto is nevertheless determined to be seen this week. Here’s a quick look at what we saw.

Best of DesignTO 2025

Recent Works – Dennis Lin Studio

At Dennis Lin’s open studio in Parkdale, the Taiwanese-Canadian artist displayed memory-laden mobiles that are particularly close to home; Lin suspends salvaged and sentimental materials, notably chunks of charcoal from a fire that levelled his former house (read: look closely to spot a charred hardback from his child’s lost library).

Ensemble

The Plumb – located down a gritty alley and beneath a nondescript building – welcomed a dynamic display of collectible design from Montreal throughout three distinct rooms. A creature-like chair by Reggy was a bright red hit, as were meticulously crafted light fixtures by JETA, casting a flattering light on Montreal’s forward-thinking scene.

Dwell

At Union Station, Canada’s busiest hub, deliberate art moments encourage viewers to stop and ponder while everyone and everything else is on the go-go-go. The star, a sweetly designed maple tête-à-tête chair by Alison Postma (on theme and accidentally on trend, given renewed interest in ‘kissing’ chairs) nods to private moments for chit-chat.

The Invisible Tide: Awakening Unseen Forces

Enveloped with fabric and surrounded by misty water, Mason Studio proved its multidisciplinary might with an immersive installation that activated all senses. Light and rhythmic soundscapes blurred the boundaries of perception while Othership led guests through briefly transformative (and borderline athletic) breathwork, and a fragrance evoking dirt and frogs completed the delightful trip.

Panel: Craig Stanghetta: Emotionally Resonant Spaces

With panels aplenty throughout the festival, one refreshing chat at the Interior Design Show with Craig Stanghetta of Ste Marie Studio (known for transportive spaces like Elio Volpe and Caffé La Tana) reflected on emotionally charged hospitality – and how Stanghetta draws inspiration from childhood, theatre, and even the late David Lynch to create authentic concepts. ‘We're not asking people to have a fully cathartic experience when you're having a whisky sour at a hotel cocktail bar,’ he joked. ‘But we do want that atmosphere to be emotionally permeated – we want it to feel like there's something behind it.’

To Hold: A Group Exhibition Curated by Yabu Pushelberg

The all-Canadian exhibition at Yabu Pushelberg’s Leslieville studio loosely mediates on how the act of holding changes an object’s meaning. Pieces from emerging artists, like a fused pile of glass vessels by Montreal’s Verre D'Onge, to higher profile works, like a flattened disposable coffee cup embellished by Toronto’s Georgia Dickie, all hold your attention with ease.

Interior Design Show

The convention-center endeavour highlighted big brands like Montreal’s Montauk Sofa and Spain’s Cosentino, while a robust section called Studio North offered space for independent designers, including a special showcase on innovative prototypes. Vases made from men’s business shirts, and a midcentury-esque side table that’s not-so-secretly a safe? Big ideas, small packages.

REVIVE

Curated by DesignTo organisers, the exhibition at Gallery 235 contemplates preservation, exploring materials and creative practices at risk of extinction in our digital, global age. Haunting the centre, a physical self-manifestation by Ghanaian-Nigerian artist Delali Cofie takes shape as a West African-inspired masquerade garment made with sentimental scraps (like bedding, or old clothing from family members).

New Narratives in Design: Salvage, Reuse, and Toronto’s Evolving Aesthetic

An exhibition on material reuse (you know the drill: repurposed bricks, beams, etc) brought curious home-reno nerds to a conscious renovation project in Little Portugal. Nicky Bruun-Meyer, the architect, walked guests through a salvage-heavy Victorian property that she’s turning into a thoughtful three-unit building – one that puts tenants well above the bottom line.

Void: Jewelry by Chu Winnie Cheung

Chu Winnie Cheung, a recent Toronto transplant, infused a series of powerful jewellery (made by pressing shredded Xuan paper and dehydrated flowers into stone-like segments and shapes) with her deeply personal, decentralising perspective. The wearable pieces at Craft Ontario critique her experience with societal oppression, Chinese centralisation, and digital overload – jewellery, elevated with self-expression.

DesignTO Talks: Net Positive

An easy excuse to see the crowd-pleasing Ace Hotel Toronto, with its dramatic suspended lobby by Toronto’s Shim-Sutcliffe Architects (complete with a temporary light installation by artist Annie Legault), the half-day panel is certainly one for the wish-list. Aligning with a core festival theme, sustainability, local experts ruminate on topics surrounding the climate crisis, from regenerative design to urban infrastructure.

DesignTO runs until 2 February 2025, designto.org