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PARTISANS designed a new face for Royal de Versailles Jewellers’ Rolex Boutique in downtown Toronto that pays homage to the high-precision craftsmanship that defines the Swiss brand’s timepieces. Using parametric modeling to translate the anatomical components of a watch into architectural geometries that are at once classical and contemporary, we designed a rippling limestone façade that complements and contrasts the 14-storey modernist high-rise that sits above. The east façade is CNC-etched with an algorithmic pattern that was developed in collaboration with computational designer Arturo Tedeschi. Inspired by watch face engravings, the façade’s fluid folds and microtextural striations glitter when grazed by sunlight, infusing the stone with movement and vitality.
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The revitalized storefront is a contextual intervention that reimagines the façade as an elegant and enduring intervention on Toronto’s Mink Mile — an upscale commercial corridor in Toronto’s Yorkville community. Integrating with the tower’s original elements, the design introduces soft undulations that offer a gentle yet resolute counterpoint to the modernist building’s austere rectilinearity. To honour the site’s history and the surrounding urban fabric, we used limestone — the same material that was originally used to clad the base of the 1970s high-rise. We were keen to subvert conventional approaches to working with limestone — a durable material with a classical pedigree — while remaining deferential to context and contributing to the future heritage of the site.
We selected limestone as a construction material for its timelessness and sustainable profile. Limestone confers several advantages related to durability, insulation, and energy consumption. Resistant to weather, pests, and fire, it is hard-wearing and long-lasting; it also behaves as an excellent thermal mass, helping to regulate indoor temperatures. The processing of stone requires relatively low energy, and because it is widely available in North America, it was easy to procure locally, reducing the carbon footprint associated with its transportation. Limestone weathers beautifully over time, requiring minimal maintenance. The prefabrication of the stone panels also resulted in minimal construction waste, offering a progressive model for responsible, high-performance retail architecture.
The success of the façade redesign for the Royal de Versailles Jewellers’ Rolex Boutique lies in the execution of a larger architectural conceit: the translation of watch design, using parametric and algorithmic tools and digital fabrication, into building design.
We conceived of glazed apertures that resemble the sapphire crystals that cover the dial of high-end timepieces while the carved limestone encircles the rounded edges of the windows like the bezel of a watch. The stone fins, which are reminiscent of lugs — the projections that secure a watch case to its strap — extend up to meet the high-rise’s bifold steel fins and follow a curved trajectory down the building’s exterior, lending a pillowy quality to the solid stone.
The cladding on the east façade is CNC-etched with an algorithmic pattern that was inspired by a signature element of timepiece design: the engravings often found on their dials or faces. Dial and bezel design use materials, textures, hues, and motifs to reflect light and elicit dynamism in service of distinguishing a timepiece’s unique identity. We partnered with Tedeschi to conceive of a distinctive three-dimensional texture whose fluid folds and striations shimmer in the sun, turning the cream-coloured limestone into a dynamic canvas. The use of algorithmic design allowed us to achieve the kind of layered complexity and detailed artistry one sees in high-precision timepieces in the built form — an homage to the brand’s time-honoured craftsmanship.
“The new façade at Royal de Versailles introduces a distinctive and innovative presence at a high-profile intersection in downtown Toronto. By collaborating with a skilled Canadian architectural team who blends cutting-edge design and fabrication technologies with traditional craftsmanship, we were able to push design boundaries and achieve striking results. The project has been well-received by both the public and our clientele.” – Zach Burnett, VP Development at Burnac
PARTISANS is a Toronto-based architecture studio whose team of designers, makers, and thinkers mobilize artistry, innovation, and pragmatism in service of an ambitious mission: to make the improbable possible. Working across scales and typologies, from homes, furniture, and cultural venues to retrofits, mass-timber buildings, and master plans, we bring an unblinking enthusiasm for intersecting advanced design technologies, digital fabrication, and building science with hand-drawing, craftsmanship, and interdisciplinary collaboration. Architecture is not just the act of designing a building; it is a way of seeing, thinking, and making that expands and even revolutionizes our experience of the world. To that end, we scrutinize context, identify uncommon solutions, and distill our client’s objectives, translating insights into an architectural approach that aligns vision with values to optimize performance, pro forma, and placemaking.
