IIDEX trade show, Toronto, 2012

(These images and an accompanying feature story appeared in Officeinsight. The Herman Miller Collection images were commissioned by Herman Miller. ) Year after year, IIDEX Canada, Canada’s largest design expo and conference, would attract about 350 exhibitors and 15,000 attendees from across Canada and the bordering U.S. States to the Direct Energy Centre at Toronto’s Exhibition Place. This year, on Sep. 20 and 21, the hall seemed more filled with exhibitors and visitors, and the buzz was palpable. This year’s new twist was the joint venture between Interior Designers of Canada (IDC) and Architecture Canada-Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC), with the interior design and architecture communities collaborating to co-present IIDEX. (IDC will continue to own IIDEX, and Informa Canada will continue to manage it.) Reviewing this year’s statistics, IIDEX VP Tracy Bowie said, “We are happy to report that IIDEX attendance increased for the first time in many years to 15,500. The biggest gain was in interior designers and architects from across Canada, thanks to the new partnership with RAIC. The multi-disciplinary diversification of IIDEX Canada to include all areas of design and attract all design professionals combined with lots of new initiatives at the show. It was a winning approach and a model for future growth.” IIDEX continues to broaden its original mandate as a contract office furniture show and include hospitality, lighting, landscape architecture, textile design and other areas. CUTLINES: Mission Design Booth, a joint effort of nine Quebec design studios. IIDEX registration desk at Direct Energy Centre in Toronto’s Exhibition Place. Direct Energy Centre atrium. Jim Salazar at his Think Material exhibit. He presided over another IIDEX booth, for Libertyville, Illinois-based Salazar Associates, where yet more intriguing sample panels hung from the wall. Jim Salazar at his THINK: Materials exhibit. THINK: Materials, the samples showcase of more than 50 innovative materials from around the world. The booth of Toronto-based Teknion, by San Francisco-based Michael-Vanderbyl; Teknion CEO David Feldberg and Steve Verbeek, Vice-President Design. Toronto industrial design star Tom Deacon, whose many well-known creations include the Tom task chair for Toronto-based Keilhauer. Interior Designers of Canada (IDC) and Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) booth. Office-chair hockey.