Indigenous House
Indigenous House
A place for connection, learning and belonging
Magil constructed Indigenous House at the University of Toronto’s Scarborough campus. The two-storey building welcomes Indigenous students, staff, Elders and community members into a space dedicated to learning, ceremony and connection.
Developed with input from Indigenous Elders and community representatives, the project draws inspiration from the wigwam and longhouse. Its construction brings together curved timber architecture, specialized environmental systems and spaces that accommodate cultural practices. Located near the Highland Creek Ravine, the building maintains a close relationship with the surrounding landscape.
Key features | Spaces for learning and gathering
The building includes a library, offices for Elders and Indigenous staff, research and language-preservation areas, a student lounge and a teaching kitchen. Flexible spaces accommodate exhibitions, classes and ceremonies.
An atrium connects the two levels and circular gathering spaces. A large gathering room opens onto the garden through a sliding glass wall, extending activities outdoors. The landscape includes gathering areas, spaces for sacred fires, and native and medicinal plantings.
For Magil, the project demonstrates experience delivering institutional facilities that combine distinctive timber architecture with specialized functional requirements.
Construction features | A curved glulam structure
The building’s distinctive construction features include its ovoid form and curved glue-laminated timber structure. The diagonal timber grid recalls traditional bentwood construction techniques.
The exposed structure serves both a load-bearing function and a central role in the building’s architectural expression. Its construction brings together the timber frame, envelope, atrium and circular spaces, with execution details contributing directly to the quality of the finished environment.
Environmental systems | Combining passive strategies with mechanical equipment
The building incorporates a highly insulated envelope, natural ventilation and heat pumps. An underground air-tube system also uses the relatively stable temperature of the ground to temper incoming fresh air before it reaches the energy recovery ventilation system.
Outside air enters through a sculptural concrete intake and travels through the buried tubes. Construction integrates exterior and underground infrastructure with the mechanical systems and building envelope to support a strategy designed to reduce energy demand.
Cultural uses | Building spaces that support ceremony
Cultural practices are integral to the building’s requirements. Heat detection devices adapted to these uses allow smudging ceremonies to take place indoors.
Delivering these spaces translates specific cultural needs into tangible building features. Magil’s role supported this approach: constructing a facility where architectural and technical choices serve the activities the building is intended to accommodate.
Site integration | Connecting the building to the landscape
Built on a former surface parking lot, Indigenous House transforms the site into a gathering place overlooking the Highland Creek Ravine. Landscaped ramps, gardens and outdoor pathways complement the building and provide opportunities for outdoor learning and community activities.
The sloping terrain and proximity to the ravine required particular attention to grading, underground services and stormwater management. These works complete the building’s integration into its natural setting.
