1 ARTS aND Champalimaud plays up the vibrant side of Canadian sense of place with the vivid colors and strong shapes in Delta Hotels' new Toronto flagship. By Oriana Lerner 1 The lobby's bright yellow chairs provide a curvy accent to an otherwise linear space. 42 boutiquedesign.com march 2015 One LOOk at any space in the Delta Toronto and it's abundantly clear that the eyes behind the hotel's design know Canadian culture from a local's perspective. The choice of hot list artists, the curation of metallics and woods, and the appreciation for the strong, handsome shapes of the FF&E that could reference the city's waterfront or its architecture are too subtle to have been done by an outsider doing a flyover. But there's more here. Decisions like the introduction of vivid accents and unexpected lighting fixtures suggest the vision of someone who has been away for a while and come back- with new ideas and a whole new appreciation of what would make a flagship property authentically "Canadian." That's exactly what Delta Hotels and Resorts wanted. Long before its recently announced acquisition by Marriott Intl., the chain had launched an introspective design overhaul aimed at energizing its interiors. Several properties have already benefitted from (including the Delta Ottawa, which was a finalist in the 2013 Gold Key Awards for Excellence in Hospitality Design), the new-build Toronto flagship was also intended as a showcase for the reinvented brand. Champalimaud got the nod to deliver on that mission statement. This project represented a C O U r T e S y O F D e LTa H O T e L S a n D r e S O r T S CraFTSManSHiPhttp://www.boutiquedesign.com