Présences du littéraire dans l’espace public canadien

Pointe-des-Seigneurs Park is bounded by the des Seigneurs Street, the Lachine Canal and the tailrace in Griffintown, borough Southwest. It's characterized by the presence of ruins, which are currently the object of archaeological excavations, and several vehicular axes (streets, bike paths and waterways). The project aims to develop the site, first, by integrating a second tip of land that lies within the perimeter formed by the tailrace and Basin and Richmond Street. This extension of the site, which is similar to the reflection of the original site in the shimmering water of the tailrace, has the advantage of preserving the banks of the canal from the development and providing a public space to meet the needs of future residents in a neighborhood that will become much more denser in the coming years. The project is divided into three areas of intervention:

Zone 1: the concrete slab
The first intervention area is bounded by the perimeter of the slab, which lies north of the archaeological remains. Suggesting both a palimpsest and a patchwork of concrete that remind the presence of the Caledonia Iron Works foundry and Ogilvie Mills, this slab will be extended to des Seigneurs Street to create a junction point with the sidewalk. It will be used as a literary medium integrating large letters of metal (cast iron), which will be embedded in concrete. The poetic text will establish a dreamlike link between several historical and symbolic aspects of this site, which is the starting point of the explorer La Salle (1643-1687) who was wishing to visit China. This expedition is also the origin of the name of Lachine assigned to this district.

Zone 2: the tailrace
Over the decades, the banks of the tailrace formed a waste land and still present today, from the small bridge connecting them both, a bucolic view that we wish to preserve and emphasize through a second literary intervention. Here, we wish to pay tribute to individuals who have worked on this place by installing different names lying on the surface of the water. In the manner of certain representations of the character of Ophelia floating on the water, these names will recall the importance of individuals, known or anonymous, who have made this place live and who were from various cultural and linguistic communities. At night, these letters will illuminate discreetly and sporadically, thereby continuing to be reflected in the water of the canal.

Zone 3: the esplanade of stables
Inspired by the historical timber storage area and corrugated roofs of some buildings which formely characterized this place, we propose to transform the second tip added to the original site into an urban plaza where residents can come to walk, relax, and have fun. This tip contains one of the oldest stables in Montreal and a heritage building that will be integrated into the development of this site, which consists of a large wooden terrace that will be object of undulations and unevenness, offering an organic and recreational environment. In a scattered way throughout the terrace, fragments of words, associated with the site and its history, will be integrated into the ground by using extrusion or pyrography. Those fragments will evoke the memory and the passage of time in a funny way, and everyone will be invited, such as crossword or Scrabble fans, to complete them.