This week I’m featuring two buildings chosen because I was attracted to their rounded features. My muse continues to play hide-and-seek with me and I just can’t seem to find words to knit together into a story, so the photos will need to tell their own story.
My understanding is that on the floor of the lobby of this condo is a mosaic from the original building containing the initials IBC (Imperial Bank of Canada).
I don’t know what the purpose was for this particular Chamber door, but on another building a few blocks away that also had a “Chamber” door, I found a plaque that suggested a clue. It seems that the upper floor above the bank were used as meeting rooms for the early township council.
Convocation Hall has a seating capacity of over 1,700 and serves as a venue for major events.
Thursday Doors is weekly photo feature hosted by Norm Frampton at Norm 2.0.
My Life Lived Full 
Love the round, too, and I’m glad they kept the older part. There’s just something about a turret or tower.
janet
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I couldn’t agree more! I always imagine a reading nook in the curve of one of the windows … preferably with a gorgeous view 🙂
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Joanne, just imagine how plain and boring the Imperial Bank building would be if the corner was just a simple 90 degree corner. The rounded corner, which only adds a bit of additional work and materials, increases the appeal of the building immensely. I’m not sure who the first architect was to recognize this technique and style, but that person deserves a medal. ~James
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I agree completely! Not only does adding a ‘turret’ onto a building increase its appeal for me, but putting the doorway on the corner is always going to be a big win by my standards!
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Some very pleasing curves here. Oh, and the doors too. Too bad they couldn’t make the rest of the condo in the same style as the IBC part of it.
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I suspect that would be an architectural wonder to see!
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I love that curved facade of Convocation hall.
Gee condo towers in Toronto? Really? 😉
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Can you imagine? … and the damn things keep sprouting up like mushrooms.
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230 is an interesting set of doors – one private, one public.
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I suspect they’re both private and the other door is locked. We sat across the street in a coffee shop for some time and the steady stream of traffic only used the one door.
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Your muse seems to be doing pretty well my friend. I’m thinking you could do a walking tour gig on the side. My goodness you certainly must be an expert at finding every kind of building. Seriously I bet in summer it could be quite a busy job. Not that you are necessarily looking for one. 🙂
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haha! Thanks for thinking I could be good at it 🙂 Truth is (1) I’m too introverted and (2) my voice is too soft … no one would ever hear a word I said over the noise of traffic 😉
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You need someone noisy like me to be your assistant. 🙂
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We would make a great team 🙂
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I think we would!
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Beautiful doors and I love curved buildings and entrances. Thanks for explaining the “Chambers” bit, because I would have been wondering about that.
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I’m still kind of wondering … like why are there 2 buildings only a few blocks away from each other, both with “Chamber” doors?
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The wooden doors are always the ones that call to me. I especially like the one under “Chambers” but wouldn’t like to be the postman who has to slide the mail through that slot which is down way too low. Oh his aching back.
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I saw that too. I wonder why it’s so low.
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Historic doors always have a hidden story to tell. Nice. 🙂
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It’s that hidden story that I wish we could tap into. How interesting it would be!
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Love how you anticipate our questions. I saw the door marked “Chambers” and thought, Chambers? You, of course, had the answer!
It astonishes me to see the design and construction efforts that went into the older buildings – especially those with curves – or maybe I’m wrong in assuming that curves are trickier than straight lines. Either way, I’m glad that they built ’em that way, I’m glad that the shell has been preserved, and I’m glad that you shared some excellent shots with us.
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Thanks Maggie. I’m assuming too that curves are harder to build than straight lines, so a building like Convocation Hall is a wonder to me.
Glad I could anticipate your questions 🙂
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I love the classical style of buildings, those rounded walls, columns and capitals and the lovely copper domed roof (well I can’t quite see if there is one here, but there might be!)
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Your comment made me look it up and it is a copper domed roof – good eye 🙂
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I like the curves too, Joanne. I think they must require a lot more creativity, work, and attention to detail than rectangular buildings. They stand out as extra special.
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There are so many straight lines and corners in a typical building, it is always so refreshing to see rounded features. I love the curves 🙂
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I happen to be a huge fan of round buildings and houses. So much more fun than square ones. Tricky perhaps in a house with regards to furniture placement, but that’s part of the fun.
The first house we built in Nicaragua had not a straight corner. Everything was rounded. From kitchen counter toos, doorways, doors, sides of pool etc.
The former Imperial bank is my favorite.
Love your architectural posts that make me notice all sorts of details.
Peta
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Thanks Peta. I love rounded features and I imagine that your home in Nicaragua was a pretty cool place to live in. It has a softer and gentler look so I would expect it to have a calming effect.
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I love curved walls and pillars and columns, with no sharp edges everything becomes softer and more welcoming and to think that all of that stone was cut by hand too.
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I agree about the softer and more welcoming look. The workmanship in cutting all that stone!!
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I love rounded bits of buildings. Round is my favourite shape.
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Me too! Round is soft and gentle. It has a calming influence.
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I actually stopped and admired a door while out and about, even telling Susan it was only right and proper to bask in it’s doorness because it was Thursday. What have you done to me? ; )
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hahahaha!! Didn’t I warn you?
I like that … basking in its doorness. I know exactly how that feels 🙂
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The curved buildings of the bank and convocation hall are splendid and their roundness makes curves of “smiles” appear, Joanne.
I liked the banks wooden doors with the curved wooden frames on the top half of each door! Cobalt blue door framework is anothet big “plus,” in my mind!
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Blue on or around a door will always be a favourite of mine too. We sat in a coffee shop across the street from this old bank building and I had a chance to admire it for a while … but in all that time I hadn’t noticed the rounded top of the door windows which matched the large window on the side.
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It is always wonderful to have different aspects come out in blogging comments, Joanne. I enjoy the times either of us have a chance to include a short dialogue together. 🙂
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I agree! … and we never quite know what posts and random comments will trigger a conversation 🙂
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Maybe your muse is a-round somewhere! 😀
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LOL – damn muse 😉
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I just love that old architecture. Nice photos.
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Thanks Tippy. I find that more and more I’m starting to appreciate the blending of old with new.
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It’s a good recipe.
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Some regal buildings there!
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Regal is a good way to describe old architecture.
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Your pictures definitely do tell a great story. The roundness is inexplicably inviting!
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Roundness IS very inviting! – this post has demonstrated to me that I’m not the only one who thinks so 🙂
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I love the round and the blue sky in the bottom two let us feel the curves even more….
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Sadly we haven’t seen blue skies for a while … only endless grey.
However you are so right that blue skies seem to make everything pop more 🙂
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yeah, gray here too…. the kind of gray with the “a” and not the “e” – kidding
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LOL! 😀
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cheers – 🙂
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Heartwarming a piece of heritage survived. This makes for an interesting entrance. Hate to see it disappear. Thanks, Joanne. Nice to see the past connect with the present. 🙂
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That’s what I’m deciding too, Tess. I prefer to see these relics from the past incorporated into new buildings. It’s just not realistic to assume that these old buildings sitting on prime real estate – with their outdated plumbing and electrical – aren’t going to get swallowed up. When it’s done respectfully, I’m happy.
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I love round window areas, always hoped to have one myself one day. What a great place to have a desk, a chair or a table to overlook and see more than you normally would. It must feel like being surrounded by the outside, while being sheltered inside. Great buildings…all of them.
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Like you, I love the idea of a rounded room surrounded by light with cozy seating to read a book or simply watch the world outside 🙂
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I love how the windows in the door match the window on the side of the bank building, and that Hall’s architecture is wonderful!
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Oh! You’re good! I never noticed that. I just knew that I really liked the window and thought it complemented the “look” very well. You’ve just pointed out why! 🙂
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🙂
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So, it looks like they left the skeleton of the old building wrapped around the condo? It’s nice that they didn’t demolish the whole thing. Your muse will come back (maybe it’s hanging out on a beach somewhere sipping daiquiris with my muse ) but, in the meantime, I am enjoying your pictures!
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My muse has been MIA for a few months now. If she is on a beach somewhere without me, I’m going to be really annoyed when she returns!!
I’m starting to notice more and more high rises that have been built on top of and around old heritage buildings. This is one of them. I think it’s cool that they’ve preserved the facade and the lobby.
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Oh my. So grand. Excellent choices, great doors, no muse required. Perhaps you’re reflecting on the circle of life, or the curve balls you’ve been thrown. Regardless I hope the roundness you’ve captured lends to a sense of smooth grace 🙂
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I’ve always loved rounded features on buildings. The typical building – regardless of what it is for – tends to be a study of straight lines. When rounded features are introduced – such as arches, turrets, etc … it really appeal to my eye. It adds an elegance – and yes, grace – to the structure.
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I agree. Always eye-catching for me, too.
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Oh, I so wonder what those condos look like, because the building is beautiful! Joanne–find a way to get inside and snap some photos….. 🙂
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I was so tempted to walk inside … I actually stood outside the building for a while trying to get up some nerve. I probably looked like a stalker or something 😉
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wow! Running from prison guards, walking into strange buildings….I love it, Joanne!
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I’m trying to get braver 🙂
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