Explore Toronto’s Buildings

The 16th annual Doors Open Toronto presented by Great Gulf returns on Saturday, May 23 and Sunday, May 24, offering free and rare access to more than 155 architecturally, historically, culturally and socially significant buildings across the city.

In honour of this summer’s TORONTO 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games, this year’s theme – Sports, Recreation and Leisure – features private and public recreational sites ranging from aquatic centres to athletics stadiums.

To plan your Doors Open Toronto weekend, refer to  Doors Open Toronto website for information on free special programming, exhibits, walking tours, and special talks that can be experienced during the event.

Doors Open is presented by Great Gulf and produced by the City of Toronto in partnership with the broader community.

Via  City of Torontpo | Doors Open Toronto

Free tours of the @AgaKhanMuseum's Auditorium, Bellerive Room, Courtyard, Atrium, Lounge and Aga Khan Park. #DOT15 http://t.co/I7PsKLlQGc—
Doors Open Toronto (@Doors_OpenTO) May 22, 2015

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Aga Khan Museum

Building Description

The Aga Khan Museum offers visitors a window into worlds unknown or unfamiliar: the artistic, intellectual, and scientific heritage of Muslim civilizations across the centuries from the Iberian Peninsula to China. Designed by Fumihiko Maki, the most notable feature of the building is the constant presence of light outlining interior and exterior spaces including galleries, classrooms and a 350-seat theatre. The exterior walls of the museum are composed of Brazilian granite. Maki incorporates historical elements coming from within the facility such as Islamic cultures, building bridges between eras, as well as civilizations.

Visitor Experience

Opened in September 2014, visitors are invited to explore the Aga Khan Museum at their leisure or with a guided tour. Discover the play of light in the open-roofed courtyard, the graceful dome of the Auditorium, and the beautiful Bellerive Room, where you will find a selection of ceramics from the Museum’s Permanent Collection. Relax at the end of your visit with a stroll through the Aga Khan Park, one of Toronto’s newest green spaces! Free architectural tours highlighting the key features of the site will be offered throughout the day. Staff and volunteers will be on hand to answer questions about the Museum. Note: only non-flash photography allowed. A free, expert-led tour, courtesy of The Cultural Landscape Foundation’s What’s Out There Weekend Toronto, is available on Sunday, May 24 at 2pm. Limited space available. Visit Special Programs for details and registration.

Via City of Torontpo | Doors Open Toronto | Aga Khan Museum

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Ismaili Centre, Toronto

Building Description

The new Ismaili Centre is a place of worship and education featuring a unique prayer hall with a crystalline glass dome roof that lights up the skyline. The Centre is a complex of varied spaces for contemplation and cultural and educational activity. The prayer hall is composed of structural steel trusses of various depths and dimensions, covered by a double layer of glass. The glass rises in the shape of an inverted cone and is pieced together to form a translucent fractal skin. Connecting the prayer hall and social hall is a generous foyer. In the social hall, the ceiling is approximately two stories high and the descending glass roof fills it with natural light while the doors open to the gardens. The lounge, library and classrooms are on the main floor while the upper level is home to administrative offices and a formal boardroom that opens onto a stone terrace and garden.

Visitor Experience

A tour of the prayer hall, atrium, social hall, boardroom and the stone terrace and garden will be offered. Photography is allowed in the social spaces however there is no photography/videography permitted in the prayer hall. Guests are also encouraged to visit the Aga Khan Museum and the Aga Khan Park for the gardens and reflecting pools, presenting a serene space that is modern and timeless. Last tour offered at 4:15pm. A free, expert-led tour of the Aga Khan Park, courtesy of The Cultural Landscape Foundation’s What’s Out There Weekend Toronto, is available. Visit Special Programs for details and registration.

Via  City of Torontpo | Doors Open Toronto | Ismaili Centre, Toronto

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