The Forks unveils warming hut designs from around the world

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The Present, by Grade 10 Students at the MET Exchange School, is one of the Warming Huts at The Forks for 2025. (Ken Gabel/CTV News Winnipeg)

Pom Pom, a warming hut created by Haoran Deng and Bicen Song, is among the works on display at The Forks for the 2025 Warming Hut season. (Ken Gabel/CTV News Winnipeg)

Prairie Castle, created by Nick Green and Greig Pirri of Scotland, is among the Warming Huts at The Forks for Winter 2025. (Ken Gabel/CTV News Winnipeg)

Prototype Home, created by the University of Manitoba Faculty of Architecture, is delivered to The Forks on January 24, 2025. Prototype Home is one of the new warming huts at The Forks this year. (Ken Gabel/CTV News Winnipeg)

The Forks has unveiled its 2025 warming huts, with designs that include a present, a sunken car and a grain elevator.

This year’s design teams, which include artists from Scotland, Hong Kong, the United States and Winnipeg, are bringing creativity, art and joy to The Forks.

“It’s the 15th year of warming huts. It’s obviously a project that’s near and dear to The Forks’ heart and many people in Winnipeg’s hearts,” said Zach Peters, communications and marketing manager for The Forks.

The artists and architects have been working all week to put the final touches on their installations, which include:

• ‘Rosemary Skool’ by this year’s invited artists Suzanne Morissette and Jaimie Isaac. The hut, which is made of snow and bricks from clay from the river, represents a birchbark basket. It’s intended to not only be a piece of visual art, but also a place for programming and events.
• ‘Pom Pom’ by Haoran Deng and Bicen Song. The ‘Pom Pom’ is a spherical hut with a hollow centre inspired by a beaver’s ball shape when wrapping for heat. Visitors are encouraged to engage in storytelling, musical performances and workshops while at the hut.
• ‘Prairie Castle’ by Nick Green and Greig Pirri. This warming hut combines the distinct form of grain elevators and an imposing archway. ‘Prairie Castle’ serves as a memorial to the lost grain elevators of Canada.
• ‘Wrong Turn’ by Christopher Loofs, Jordan Loofs and Kaci Marshall is a playful critique on climate change. The hut depicts a vintage car crashing through the ice with a gas pump next to it.
• ‘The Present’ by Grade 10 students at MET Exchange School. The exterior of this installation mimics that of a gift with a ribbon and wrapping paper, while the interior includes a tree, lighting, decorations, present-shaped seats and a small book library. The warming hut is aimed at capturing the warmth and excitement of the holiday season.
• ‘Prototype Home’ by the University of Manitoba’s faculty of architecture. This hut represents a single-person transitional housing unit. This installation, which was created in collaboration with Marion Willis and S. Boniface Street Links, addresses the critical issue of homelessness in the city.

More than 140 entries were submitted to take part in this year’s warming hut display.

• With files from CTV’s Ainsley McPhail