smart | schools


Students’ warming hut reflects well on U of M


University of Manitoba students contribute design to the warming huts on display on the river


The winning design submitted by the U of M students for "Mirror Cloaking." By UM Today For the fifth year, University of Manitoba faculty of ar-


chitecture students will showcase their talent on the river trail at Te Forks, this year with a warming hut entitled “Mirror Cloaking.” Te winning team’s shelter will be included among


others chosen from over 100 submissions from around the world in Warming Huts v. 2015: An Art + Architecture Competition – an annual competition now in its sixth year. Te “Mirror Cloaking” shelter, by U of M students Wong


Zheng, Rafael Vieira Leal, and Wei Zou, uses one-way mir- rors and polished stainless steel panels to create a mirror box that allows skaters to perceive the warming hut from outside as part of the winter landscape – yet closer inspec- tion reveals that the hut is a reflection of its surroundings. And once inside, skaters can see out. Te students say, “Te design plays with the idea that


the enclosed structure becomes transparent and visitors can still find warmth within an ‘open’ space.


The winning team (from left to right): Wong Zheng, Rafael Vieira Leal, and Wei Zou. “Te faculty of architecture, with its large and very suc-


cessful undergraduate environmental design program, is honoured and pleased to participate again in the warming huts event,” says Ralph Stern, dean of the faculty. “It is a great opportunity to underscore the fundamental inter- relationship between design and environment in a promi- nent location celebrating both Winnipeg and Manitoba.” Tis year’s competition includes an art installation


category. Te submissions were reviewed by a blind jury, which includes U of M alumnus and trailblazer Sasa Radulovic. Te jury narrowed the entries to two winning shelter designs and one installation. “Over the years, we’ve pushed the envelope on the word


‘warming hut,’” says Paul Jordan, chief executive officer of the Forks Renewal Corporation. “More and more, we’ve seen the designs resemble less of a hut and become more about attention to design and detail. Te completion has become a competitive space for artists and architects to dream and see their dream into reality. And the best part is that it’s really allowed us to make high-end art and architecture accessible to everyone.”


Other structures on this year’s trail will include “Re-


cycling Words,” designed by KANVA Architecture from Montreal, “Te Hole Idea,” designed by Weiss Architec- ture & Urbanism Limited from Toronto, Canada and “Tis Big,” by Tina Soil and Luca Roncoroni from Droebak Akershus, Norway, who also won in Warming Huts v. 2013 for their entry “Wind Catcher.” Over the years, the Warming Hut competition has also


attracted some great newcomers. Tis year, Kelvin High School, with help from Red River Mutual, has designed and will be constructing a hut entitled 6043. And after much success, RAW:almond, an outdoor


popup restaurant, will also bring its unique outdoor res- taurant experience back to the trail. Faculty of architec- ture alumnus Joe Kalturnyk conceived the RAW:almond concept and collaboration, which is now in its third year. Construction of the huts will take place in early January,


weather permitting, and will be on the Red River Mutual Trail the third week of the same month. For more stories from the University of Manitoba, visit www.umtoday.ca.


Mondetta Clothing comes full circle, adds


retail store to its owners’ former campus MPG On Campus, the first North American retail outlet for Mondetta, recently opened in Duckworth Centre By Diane Poulin


store opened on the second floor of the Duckworth Centre within the United Health and RecPlex, a block-long health and wellness destination. Students and the general public will


I


The interior of MPG on Campus at the U of W. January 2015


have access to the company’s full col- lection of fashion-forward, technically advanced active apparel. The 600 sq. ft. MPG on Campus store is staffed by UWinnipeg students in partnership with the faculty of business and economics, providing real world training and case study opportunities. Mondetta Clothing was founded at Te


University of Winnipeg while all four original founders were students in 1986,


n partnership with The University of Winnipeg, the first ever Mondetta Performance Gear (MPG) on Campus


so the opening of this store marks the company’s return to its roots. Two sets of brothers struck up a friendship in Riddell Hall – Ash and Prashant Modha, Raj and Amit Bahl, and the Modhas’ cousin, Pra- tik Modha (who left the company shortly after). Together they would go on to create a global active wear clothing company that today employs 100 people in the United States, China, Hong Kong, and at their head office in Winnipeg. “Having first started at the UWinnipeg,


it is truly an honour and a genuine joy to return with a retail outlet to serve not only the students at the school, but also the Winnipeg community at large,” says Ash Modha, Mondetta CEO. “And as we continue to see the convergence between brick-and-mortar and online stores, MPG on Campus will act as a fantastic learn- ing experience as to how consumers in the future will change their buying


www.smartbizwpg.com


behaviours.” “Mondetta – which means small world


– is truly a homegrown success story, and an inspiration to our students: hard work and perseverance do pay off,” says Dr. Annette Trimbee, president and vice- chancellor of UWinnipeg. “We are de- lighted to bring this store to campus and eventually offer our business students new practicum possibilities.” Te grand opening of MPG On Cam-


pus took place on Dec.13. MPG, in part- nership with a Korean manufacturing partner, has already opened 15 stores and soft shops in Seoul, which have been well-received as an alternative to the conventional offerings in the active wear market. The Winnipeg store will mark the company’s first foray in retail operations in North America and will be followed by additional store openings in the near future.


Smart Biz 13


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20