To·Be·Longing: Queeries & Cocktails

As part of the DesignTO 2026 festival, architect and educator Quan Thai and Ace Hotel Toronto, invites you to an intimate evening of “Queeries & Cocktails.” The discussion centers on the exhibition TO·BE·LONGING: Portraits of Queer Living, bringing together community contributed artifacts from the homes of our queer community and an immersive spatial experiment hosted in Suite 1104. The event prompts how queer experiences may shape and subvert the rigid, heteronormative domesticity of multi-unit housing.

Our panel brings together three distinct voices in visual storytelling, design, and theory to explore the relationships between the body, the object, and the space.

Host:
Quan Thai, Architect, Educator, and Curator of TO·BE·LONGING: Portraits of Queer Living

Panelists:

Chad Burton, Fashion Editor, Interiors & Product Stylist
Bahar Ghaemi, Creative Director of Product, Yabu Pushelberg
Sean Santiago, Design Editor-at-Large, Creative Director, Former Deputy Editor of ELLE Decor

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Speaker Biographies

Quan Thai (he/him)
Quan Thai is an architect, educator, and curator of TO·BE·LONGING: Portraits of Queer Living. Currently an Assistant Professor at Lawrence Technological University, he was the inaugural Emerging Practitioner Teaching Fellow at the University of Waterloo (2023–25). Building on over a decade of experience at studios such as WORKac, Atelier Barda, and SvN, Thai founded NeverOnly Architecture to bridge the gap between professional practice and academia. His mode of inquiry emphasizes collaborative design and critical reflection at the intersection of community engagement and the built environment.

Chad Burton (he/him)
Chad Burton is a multi-hyphenate interior decorator, fashion & still-life stylist and content creator that loves a good tablescape. Through his travels and time spent living abroad in Seoul and London, Chad is heavily inspired by global fashion & design. He favours a high-low mix of luxury and vintage finds. As well, he’s a passionate supporter of local designers and enjoys bringing a story-teller’s, playful approach to styling and interiors. 

Bahar Ghaemi (she/her)
Bahar Ghaemi is the Creative Director of Products at Yabu Pushelberg, where she leads the studio’s product vision, partnerships, and brand direction alongside a multidisciplinary team. Since joining the firm in 2012, she has grown the studio’s product practice into an internationally recognized platform spanning furniture, lighting, textiles, and objects. Partnering with leading international brands including Molteni&C, B&B Italia, Marset, cc-tapis, Ligne Roset and MDF Italia.

Sean Santiago (he/him)
Sean Santiago is a writer, editor and creative strategist whose work takes him sometimes quite literally to the dusty floors of the design industry’s biggest talents. Since starting his career at a small town firm, Santiago has brought a sense of wonder and whimsy to the world of interior decoration, most recently as the deputy editor of Elle Decor. Currently, he writes the newsletter, Room Temp, and is the host of the Gay Genius podcast.