Organizer Information
Winter Stations is a not-for-profit public art and design initiative based in Toronto, Canada. Since 2015, it has invited artists, architects, designers, students, and creative practitioners from around the world to transform Toronto’s dormant winter lifeguard stations into temporary public art installations. The annual exhibition brings large-scale creative works to Woodbine and Kew beaches, creating an open-air exhibition that attracts thousands of visitors and explores the relationship between art, design, public space, and the waterfront.
Title & Description
Winter Stations 2027 Design Competition
Winter Stations 2027 – Monument Design Competition invites artists, designers, architects, studios, students, and enthusiasts to propose an interactive public installation responding to the theme “Monument.” The competition asks participants to reconsider what a monument can represent today and what contemporary society chooses to remember, honour, or preserve.
Selected proposals will transform Toronto’s winter lifeguard stations into temporary monuments that create memories, encourage conversation, and bring people together. The works should be meaningful both as public art and as designed structures that can withstand a challenging winter beach environment. Winter Stations aims to build approximately 4–6 winning proposals, subject to available funding.
Categories
- Design
- Architecture
- Public Art
- Installation Art
- Sculpture
- Urban Design
Eligibility
The competition is international and open to everyone, regardless of country, age, or professional experience. Artists, designers, architects, studios, students, and enthusiasts may apply. Applicants can submit individually or as a team and may submit more than one proposal.
Program Benefits & Awards
- $10,000 CAD for labour
- $5,000 CAD for materials
- $2,000 CAD honorarium for each winning artist or team
- Opportunity to have the proposed installation fabricated and exhibited as part of the six-week Winter Stations exhibition
- Public presentation at Toronto’s Woodbine and Kew beaches
- $500 CAD for runners-up
The competition uses a blind jury process, with proposals evaluated without identifying information. Selection criteria include creative response to the theme (30%), design concept (30%), and design feasibility (40%).
Application Fee
None
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
Application Deadline: 15 October 2026
Exhibition: Six-week winter exhibition in 2027
Winning proposals: Approximately 4–6, subject to funding
Location
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Additional Details
The installation must acknowledge or interact with the existing lifeguard stand but cannot be structurally attached to or modify it. Designs must work on both sandy/snowy beaches and flat urban surfaces such as asphalt. Installations should function visually from both close and distant perspectives and be suitable for virtual viewing.
Enclosed or roofed proposals must not exceed a 10-square-metre footprint. Designs should account for weather, public use, vandalism, transportation, and storage. Electricity and fire are not permitted, although solar-powered elements may be considered at the organizers’ discretion. Designs involving climbing elements must comply with the Ontario Building Code.
Proposals should include a project summary, drawings and elevations, materials and dimensions, a perspective view, and an estimated installation cost. Pages 1–2 must remain anonymous and contain no personal identifying information. The official application form must be included in the final PDF.