The Toronto Lexicon, Entry No. 2

Architecture (r:kí tekt’urr) 1. The art and science of designing buildingsand public spaces. 2. A competitive global sport in which teams (“firms”)compete in matches (“design competitions”) for supremacy. In Toronto,architecture is second only to hockey in popularity, counting legions offans and numerous columnists who specialize in the sport, not to mention themany uninformed columnists and bloggers who cannot resist sharing theiropinions on it. Since architecture, like figure skating, is a judgedcompetition, matches rarely have a definitive outcome. Debate among fans canrage long after the project has been built, even when its built form bearslittle resemblance to its initial winning design. (See also Libeskind,Daniel.)

The Toronto Lexicon is an ongoing project by this blog to provide preciseand accurate definitions of terms as they are used in local politicalparlance. Tune in for regular additions.