Montreal: Design Metropolis

I knew there was a reason I liked living here.

When it's still snowing in the month of April and it seems like spring is never going to arrive, I sometimes forget why I decided to make a life in this city. Montreal is home to some of the most innovative and imaginative design in the world, and was recently acknowledged by UNESCO (United Nations Education Science and Cultural Organization) as a City of Design, an honor shared with only two other cities in the world- Berlin and Buenos Aires.

When I think about good design, I think of Alto Design, Bluesponge, Studio Feed and others. This past weekend these studios and some of Montreal's finest design studios opened their doors to the public for Design Montreal's Open House. The goal of this public event was to introduce everyone to the design and architecture professions. The originality of the Doors Open on Design Montréal event is that it relies on an existing selection of Montreal projects and professionals, from all design and architecture disciplines.

Funded by the City of Montreal, this event is planned as a yearly event, and hopefully will do for design what "free admission day" has done for Montreal's museums, and bring design to the masses. Visit www.designmontreal.com for more details.

Now go make something cool.