The history of Rainbow is now embedded in the architecture. Both priceless and affordable items share the display space. The exhaustive collection of denim is omnipresent, and now housed in monumental walls of abstracted and unfolded wooden ‘steam trunks.’ Experiments with building materials as textiles are advanced to include thirty foot steel doors of perforated metal recalling copper rivets typical to denim, braided copper thread stretched as a loom ceiling, and furled felt walls push out to expose the in-store tailor shop with embroidered signage and wall of spools.


Over the Rainbow
Textiles and Trunks
Established in the 1970’s by retail innovator Joel Carmen, Over the Rainbow became a kind of denim institution at 101 Yorkville — a building now slated for redevelopment. The new iteration of OTR a.k.a. “Rainbow Jeans” found a home in the near-by Manulife Centre. This relocation was the perfect opportunity to create an Over the Rainbow legacy project whose design imagined ‘the Rainbow experience’ beyond the retail function.
The shop sits as an island in the Manulife Centre retail floor, and a broad, open swath invites pedestrians from both the east and west sides, led by rolling, perforated metal walls that slide in front of ceramic tile ‘tartan’ and a furled glass vitrine.
Three shades of porcelain tile echo the pattern on the bias on the floor, working to unify the series of disperate display scenarios. The long space is flanked by a monumental, unfolded denim wall that embraces customers at each end.
The ledge is critical here as it’s where the very knowledgeable OTR staff personally advise each customer. This emphasis on the individual is at the centre of Rainbow’s philosophy and informed the design of ‘shops within the shop’ and radial fitting rooms where each customer is centered and separated by custom lights and felt dividers.
Project Facts
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Client
Over the Rainbow
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Location
Manulife Centre, Toronto, Ontario
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Size
11,140 sq.ft.
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Status
Largely Complete
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Affiliate Architect
B+H Architects — Base Building Renovation
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Sub-Consultant Team
Electrical — BK Consulting
Mechanical — MEP
Structural — Entuitive
Lighting — Light Brigade
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Fabricator
Light Fabricator — VISO
Copper Rope Ceiling — Cobalt Fabrication Inc. -
General Contractor
Structure Corp
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Photography
Richard Johnson
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Artist / Graphics
Embroidery Artist — Amanda McCavour