Architecture of Montreal

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View of Montreal from McTavish Street. The architecture of Montreal is characterized by a wide variety of architectural styles. Rue McTavish August 2017 01.jpg
View of Montreal from McTavish Street. The architecture of Montreal is characterized by a wide variety of architectural styles.

The architecture of Montreal , Quebec, Canada is characterized by the juxtaposition of the old and the new and a wide variety of architectural styles, the legacy of two successive colonizations by the French, the British, and the close presence of modern architecture to the south. Much like Quebec City, the city of Montreal had fortifications, but they were destroyed between 1804 and 1817.

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For over a century and a half, Montreal was the industrial and financial centre of Canada. The variety of buildings included factories, elevators, warehouses, mills, and refineries, which today provide a legacy of historic and architectural interest, especially in the Downtown area and in Old Montreal. Many historical buildings in Old Montreal retain their original form, notably the impressive 19th century headquarters of all major Canadian banks on Saint Jacques Street (formerly known as Saint James Street).

From the Art Deco period, Montreal offers a handful of notable examples: Ernest Cormier's Université de Montréal main building located on the northern side of Mount Royal and the Aldred Building at Place d'Armes, an historic square in Old Montreal.

In fact, Place d'Armes, shown in panorama below, is surrounded by buildings representing several major periods in Montreal architecture: the Gothic Revival Notre-Dame Basilica; New York Life Building, Montreal's first high-rise; the Pantheon-like Bank of Montreal head office, Canada's first bank; the aforementioned Aldred Building. [1] (1931) and the International style 500 Place D'Armes. [2]

Church architecture

Dedicated in 1829, Notre-Dame Basilica is one of four Roman Catholic basilicas located in the city. Basilica de Notre-Dame, Montreal, Canada, 2017-08-11, DD 26-28 HDR.jpg
Dedicated in 1829, Notre-Dame Basilica is one of four Roman Catholic basilicas located in the city.

Founded as a Roman Catholic French colony and nicknamed "la ville aux cent clochers" (the city of a hundred belltowers), Montreal is renowned for its churches. The city has four Roman Catholic basilicas: Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral, Notre-Dame Basilica, St. Patrick's Basilica, and Saint Joseph's Oratory. The Oratory is the largest church in Canada, with the largest dome of its kind in the world after that of Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome. Other well-known churches include Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel, which is sometimes called the Sailors' Church.

Following the British victory in the Seven Years' War, many protestant immigrants came to the city from England, Scotland and Ireland. This led to various Protestant churches being built to accommodate the growing community. The two most notable of these are the Saint James United Church and the Anglican Christ Church Cathedral, which was suspended above an excavated pit during the construction of the Promenades Cathédrale mall, part of Montreal's Underground City. [3]

Skyscrapers

At 205 metres (673 ft), 1000 de La Gauchetiere is postmodern skyscraper, and the tallest building in the city. 17-08-08-Montreal-RalfR-DSC 3577.jpg
At 205 metres (673 ft), 1000 de La Gauchetière is postmodern skyscraper, and the tallest building in the city.

Skyscraper construction in Montreal has swung between periods of intense activity and prolonged lulls. A two-year period from 1962 to 1964 saw the completion of four of Montreal's ten tallest buildings: Tour de la Bourse, I. M. Pei's landmark cruciform Place Ville-Marie, the CIBC Building and CIL House. Its tallest buildings, the 51-storey 1000 de La Gauchetière and the 47-storey 1250 René-Lévesque, were both completed in 1992.

Montreal places height-limits on skyscrapers so that they do not exceed 200m in height nor the summit of Mount Royal. [4] [5] Only the St. Joseph's Oratory reaches an elevation higher than 232.5 metres above mean sea level (Mount Royal elevation). Above-ground height is further limited in most areas and only a few downtown land plots are allowed to exceed 120 metres in height. The limit is currently attained by 1000 de La Gauchetière and 1250 René-Lévesque, the latter of which is shorter, but built on higher ground.

The Tour de Montréal, incorporated into the north base of Montreal's Olympic Stadium is the tallest inclined tower in the world, at 175 m (574 ft). [6]

Expo 67

Habitat 67 is a model community and housing complex that was showcased at Expo 67. Montreal - QC - Habitat67.jpg
Habitat 67 is a model community and housing complex that was showcased at Expo 67.

Pavilions designed for the 1967 International and Universal Exposition, popularly known as Expo 67, featured a wide range of architectural designs. Though most pavilions were temporary structures, several remaining structures have become Montreal landmarks, including the geodesic dome US Pavilion, now the Montreal Biosphère, as well as Moshe Safdie's striking Habitat 67 apartment complex. The French pavilion and Québec Pavilion of Expo 67 underwent significant renovations in 1992 to become the Montreal Casino. [7]

Montreal Metro

In terms of modern architecture, the Montreal Metro is filled with a profusion of public art by some of the biggest names in Quebec culture. In addition, the design and ornamentation of each station in the Metro system is unique, much like the Stockholm Metro and the Moscow Metro.

Other notable structures

The Olympic Stadium was the main venue for the 1976 Summer Olympics. It features the world's tallest inclined tower. Le Stade Olympique de Montreal Nuit Arriere-Gauche.jpg
The Olympic Stadium was the main venue for the 1976 Summer Olympics. It features the world's tallest inclined tower.

Other significant works of modern architecture in Montreal include the Brutalist Place Bonaventure, the world's second largest commercial building when it was completed in 1967, [8] Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's Westmount Square and Roger Taillibert's controversial Olympic Stadium, which incorporates the world's tallest inclined tower, at 175 metres.

Montreal architects Pierre Boulva and Jacques David completed a number of modernist landmarks in the 1960s, including the Palais de justice de Montréal, 500 Place D'Armes, Théâtre Maisonneuve, the Dow Planetarium and the Place-des-Arts, Atwater and Lucien-L'Allier metro stations. [9] [10]

In 2006, the city was recognized by the international design community as a UNESCO City of Design, one of the three world design capitals. [11]

Heritage conservation

The Conseil du patrimoine de Montréal advises the municipal government on matters related to heritage building preservation. [12] A pair of non-governmental groups have worked to preserve Montreal historic buildings since the 1970s: Save Montreal, co-founded by Michael Fish in 1974, and Heritage Montreal, founded by Phyllis Lambert two years later. [13] [14] In 1979, Lambert founded the Canadian Centre for Architecture (CCA), an architecture museum and research centre located in downtown Montreal. In October 2009, Lambert, Heritage Montreal and others formed a think tank called the Institut de politiques alternatives de Montréal to advise the city on a range of matters including urban planning, development and heritage. [15]

View of rue de la commune.jpg
View of Old Montreal from the Old Port of Montreal.

See also

Related Research Articles

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RÉSO, commonly referred to as the Underground City, is the name applied to a series of interconnected office towers, hotels, shopping centres, residential and commercial complexes, convention halls, universities and performing arts venues that form the heart of Montreal's central business district, colloquially referred to as Downtown Montreal. The name refers to the underground connections between the buildings that compose the network, in addition to the network's complete integration with the city's entirely underground rapid transit system, the Montreal Metro. Moreover, the first iteration of the Underground City was developed out of the open pit at the southern entrance to the Mount Royal Tunnel, where Place Ville Marie and Central Station stand today.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Montreal</span> Neighbourhood of Montreal in Quebec, Canada

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Complexe Maisonneuve</span> Office in Quebec, Canada

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Joseph's Oratory</span> Catholic shrine and minor basilica in Montreal

Saint Joseph's Oratory of Mount Royal is a Roman Catholic minor basilica and national shrine located at 3800 Queen Mary Road in the Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood on Mount Royal's Westmount Summit in Montreal, Quebec. It is a National Historic Site of Canada and is Canada's largest church, with one of the largest church domes in the world. Founded in 1904 by Saint André Bessette in honour of his patron saint, Saint Joseph, the Oratory is the product of numerous architects and thousands of workers in a process spanning six decades. With its monumental scale, Renaissance Revival facade and contrasting Art Deco interior, the Oratory is recognizable not just in Montreal but around the world, attracting more than 2 million visitors and pilgrims to its steps each year.

Dimitri Dimakopoulos was a Greek-Canadian architect. He was best known for having been involved in the design of several notable buildings in Downtown Montreal.

References

  1. ↑ Szasz, Colin (2000-12-11). "Montreal's Original Skyscraper: The Aldred Building". McGill School of Architecture. Archived from the original on 8 March 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-03.
  2. ↑ "La Place d'Armes". Old Montreal Web site. Retrieved 2008-03-20.
  3. ↑ Twain, Mark (1881-12-10). "MARK TWAIN IN MONTREAL". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-02-02.
  4. ↑ Heffez, Alanah (2008-03-06). "Skyline Planning". Spacing Montreal. Archived from the original on 2009-05-24. Retrieved 2008-04-25.
  5. ↑ "Plan d'urbanisme". Ville de Montréal. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  6. ↑ "Tour de Montréal". Emporis. Retrieved 2 April 2020.[ dead link ]
  7. ↑ ICI.Radio-Canada.ca, Zone Art de vivre-. "Le Casino de Montréal souffle 25 bougies". Radio-Canada.ca (in Canadian French). Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  8. ↑ "Place Bonaventure". The Canadian Encyclopedia . Retrieved August 25, 2019.
  9. ↑ "Montréal's Architects: David et Boulva". Images Montréal. Archived from the original on 30 April 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  10. ↑ "2007 BOMA Canada National Awards Finalists" (PDF). Building Owners and Managers Association of Canada. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-03-04. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  11. ↑ "Cities appointed to the Creative Cities Network". UNESCO. Archived from the original on 2008-01-26. Retrieved 2007-11-22.
  12. ↑ "Le Conseil du patrimoine de Montréal". City of Montreal. Retrieved 2009-03-22.
  13. ↑ Gravenor, Kristian (October 23, 2003). "The museum that is Montreal", Montreal Mirror 19 (19). Retrieved on 2009-02-11.
  14. ↑ "Phyllis Lambert". Canadian Urban Institute. Archived from the original on 2011-07-06. Retrieved 2009-03-22.
  15. ↑ "New think tank will act as conscience for mayor". Montreal Gazette. Canwest. October 15, 2009. Retrieved 21 November 2009.[ dead link ]
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