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Les aventures du cœur de l’île

From June 4 to October 3, 2021

Visual campaign Les aventures du coeur de l'île

AVENTURES DU CŒUR DE L’ÎLE

In March 2021, the Quartier des spectacles Partnership and Montréal center-ville obtained the confidence of the City of Montreal to tackle the considerable mission of revitalizing its urban center with the help of major animation and development projects. . From Atwater to Papineau, and from Sherbrooke to the St. Lawrence River, the streets of the metropolis are teeming with activities throughout the summer season and become a playground for aventures du cœur de l’île!

This summer, the city center has the means to achieve its ambitions and is stepping up the number of large-scale projects. In the four corners of the heart of the city, discover the warm Oases designed by local designers, spontaneous performances by more than 600 multidisciplinary artists, interactive and colorful installations on pedestrian streets as well as green areas for lounging in the shadows.

THE OASIS

Ten welcoming Oases created by local designers invite you to have a bite to eat, stretch out and relax, or reconnect with friends while enjoying Montreal in the open air. Enlivened by spontaneous performances and connected by an island-wide walking route, these urban islands are in active use every day, supporting cultural organizations and businesses that were hard hit by the pandemic.

Oasis | Les grands jardins

On Sainte-Catherine Street West, between the streets Chomedey and du Fort

Just west of downtown Montreal, between Chomedey and Fort Street, Les Grands Jardins takes its cue from the surrounding green spaces. Les Grands Jardins is an urban lounge dressed in the colours of spring and luxurious greenery. Both visually striking and practical, it blends in with the surrounding social life and businesses. Its Indigenous garden and plants will be cared for by Innovation Jeunes, an organization that provides a community space for downtown youths and families. Harvested vegetables will be given to Café de la Maison Ronde, a social economy project of L’Itinéraire, whose mission is to support social diversity and Indigenous autonomy. The outdoor furniture at this Oasis is brilliantly urban and practical, featuring iconic, colourful graphics that encourage locals and visitors to share a moment together in their gardens.

Credits

Creation and production : Le Comité, Pierre Moro-Lin, Marine Ledoux-Lebard, Xavier Massicotte, Alizée Fontanez and Zoé Burns-Garcia
Partners and collaboration : The Peter-McGill Community Council, Innovation Youth, Société pour l’action, l’éducation et la sensibilisation environnementale de Montréal (SAESEM), Indigenous Health Centre of Tiohtià:ke (CSAT), Quartier des spectacles Partnership and Montréal centre-ville

Oasis | Escale du coin

McGill College Avenue at the corner of Sainte-Catherine Street West

Designed by XP_MTL, this rest stop combines furniture design with greenery. It’s a great place to take a break from shopping, have a coffee or ice cream, and kick back to admire a fantastic view of Mount Royal.

Credits

Creation and production : XP_MTL
Partners and collaboration : Ivanhoé Cambridge, Montréal centre-ville, Ville de Montréal, the Gouvernement du Québec and Ville-Marie borough

Oasis | À l’ombre des cosmos

Square Victoria

In Square Victoria, À l’Ombre des Cosmos stands like a brilliant bouquet in the heart of downtown Montreal. A thousand petals suspended from a simple structure of steel pipes flutter, making a colourful landscape that moves in the breeze. At this installation designed by the studio Choses Communes, visitors enter an upside-down world where the sky is an enveloping field of flowers. This shaded space in the downtown core will be a welcome relief for passersby and local workers. À l’ombre des cosmos is a colourful invitation to experience a sense of wonder!

Credits

Creation : Choses Communes in collaboration with Louis-Guy Roy, Adrien Bochereau, Vivien Gaumand Production : Impact Échafaudage and Flash Grafix
Partners and collaboration : Quartier des spectacles Partnership and Montréal centre-ville

Awards

Platinum Winner - 15th edition of Grands prix du design (2022)

Categories : Culture, Sport & Leisure / Event Design & Ephemeral Installation

Oasis | Plage Saint-James

Square of the Saint-James United Church

This summer the beach is coming to you! This Oasis in the square facing the Saint James United Church lives up to its name, offering Montrealers a vacation in the sun, right in the downtown core. After months of being stuck at home, you’re invited to get away from it all and relax at the Plage Saint-James Oasis. Passersby can drop in on this village-like to enjoy comfortable furniture, shade, a seaside soundscape, and that one-of-a-kind feeling of hot sand under foot. It’s a unique way to take a break in the Quartier!

This Oasis features background music produced by Radio-Canada OHdio.

Credits

Creation and production : 2x4, Machine Design Appliqué and Antoine Turmine
Partners and collaboration : Quartier des spectacles Partnership, Montréal centre-ville et Radio-Canada

Oasis | Place des Festivals

The greening of downtown Montreal is a top priority for the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership this summer. Over a hundred potted trees and a fountain turn the Place des Festivals into a refreshing shade garden — the perfect spot to relax and plan your itinerary for the day. A team of urban agriculture specialists has carefully chosen the tree species for these green spaces and will treat them with tender loving care throughout the summer. Festival goers are invited to reconnect with this space while we look forward to the return of outdoor shows.

Crédits

Design : Quartier des spectacles Partnership
Partners and collaboration : Centre for Forest Research (CEF) of UQAM, Laboratoire sur l'agriculture urbaine (AU/LAB) and Sentier Urbain

Oasis | Prenez place !

At Hydro-Québec Park and on Clark and Sainte-Catherine streets

The iconic Prenez place ! with its inviting yellow table is back for a second year. At 200 meters, it seats twice as many foodies as last year. Running through the Hydro-Québec park, down Clark Street to Sainte-Catherine Street, this large-scale urban installation undulates beneath a canopy of trees, offering up one new environment and vibe after another. Each spot is brought to life with objects that intuitively encourage safe social distancing. One and all are invited to imagine a new way of coming together at a table in perfect safety. A vibrant Oasis in the heart of downtown Montreal, this environment inspires a sense of adventure with bright colours and a luminous canopy that is equally appealing by day and night.

This Oasis features background music produced by Radio-Canada OHdio.

Winner of the international Rethinking the future 2021 prize for popups and temporary installations.

Credits

Creation : ADHOC Architectes, Maude Lescarbeau and Camille Blais
Production : Le Madrier, Umake and Raphaël Thibodeau
Partners and collaboration : Centre for Sustainable Development, Hydro-Québec, Le Central, Quartier des spectacles Partnership, Montréal centre-ville and Radio-Canada

Oasis | Esplanade Tranquille

Openning in August

As of August, the Esplanade Tranquille, a new public space in the Quartier des Spectacles, will pay homage to the Tranquille Bookstore that once stood there and its owner, Henri Tranquille (1916-2005). The site of the signing of Refus Global in 1948, it’s an important historical landmark for Quebec. Inspired by the concept of the backyard, this sociable, playful space offers an entertaining cultural experience with metropolitan flair for young and old alike year-round!

Credits

Quartier des spectacles Partnership and City of Montreal

Oasis | Place des souhaits

At the corner of Saint-Laurent and René-Lévesque boulevards, in Chinatown

The Place des souhaits Oasis at the corner of Saint-Laurent and René-Lévesque Boulevard was created by a multidisciplinary team of designers and artists from Montreal’s Chinese community to highlight the cultural value of their hundred-year old neighbourhood. Steps away from the north païfang (traditional arch), it’s a new intergenerational space designed by Karen Tam and Jean de Lessard to celebrate the tangible and ephemeral aspects of Chinese culture. This Oasis surrounds visitors with a moving forest and 1,000 colourful flags inspired by traditional Cantonese operas. At its centre, an arbre à souhaits designed by Karen Tam recalls those found next to Buddhist temples. All summer long, the Place des souhaits Oasis in Chinatown will offer a colourful, musical experience and captivating performances.

This Oasis features background music produced by Radio-Canada OHdio.
Alcohol is permitted as long as it is consumed with food.

Credits

Creation : Karen Tam and Jean de Lessard - Designers Créatifs
Production : Taktik Design, Karen Tam and Quartier des spectacles Partnership
Partners and collaboration : Nicola Tardif-Bourdages, Winston Chan, Alexa Adam, Parker Mah, Nathalie Roy, Yifang Hu (Eva), Lily Lai, La Pépinière | Espaces Collectifs, Montréal centre-ville and Radio-Canada

Oasis | Quartier latin

With the most terraces in Montreal (over 50, in fact!) the Quartier Latin is the perfect place to be at cocktail hour. The pedestrian walkway on Saint Denis Street has a definite festive, friendly feel thanks to its outdoor urban furniture, including a parklet with a stunning view of the neighbourhood. On top of that, there are interactive art shows, greenery, moody lighting, a massive fresco, new murals and much more.

This Oasis features background music produced by Radio-Canada OHdio.

Credits

Creation : Atelier.ca, Îlot 84 and Le Comité
Partners and collaboration : SDC Quartier latin and Quartier des spectacles Partnership
Acknowledgments : Ville de Montréal, Ville-Marie borough and the Gouvernement du Québec

Oasis | Jardins Gamelin

Place Émilie-Gamelin

For this seventh season, Montrealers will be welcomed to a new super colourful space! Down-to-earth and sociable, the Jardins Gamelin is a great place to enjoy the summer. Visitors can take a break and take advantage of its green space, with its thematic gardens, greenhouse and butterfly tent. They can also have a bite on a new terrace with a canopy of lights and background music. In keeping with the fun vibe of the neighbourhood, huge versions of classic games will be set up for kids and grownups. In line with this season’s theme of sharing and inclusivity, artists will be set up on site to create artistic and cultural works in collaboration with members of diverse communities.

This Oasis features background music produced by Radio-Canada OHdio.

Credits

Creation : In due time
Production : In due time, MU and Quartier des spectacles Partnership
Partners and collaboration : Sentier Urbain, LNDMRK, Cirque Hors Piste, BAnQ, Radio-Canada, Ville-Marie borough, Montreal's police department and la Société de développement social.

Les arts debout by La Résistance

The heart of performance arts is beating strong and it’s reverberating everywhere in downtown Montreal! This summer a dozen dancers will make the ground shake with their spontaneous performances. La Résistance, made up of the talented choreographers and dancers Lydia Bouchard (a judge on TVA’s Revolution) and Merryn Kritzinger, lead the way. Les arts debout,  created in collaboration with the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership after a long dormant period, is energized by the choreographers’ power and passion. Blending contemporary dance and hip hop, it celebrates the rebirth of performance arts at a victorious, contagiously energetic point in time.

La Résistance is at our doors. All that’s missing is you!

Credits

Creation : La Résistance

Concept : Lydia Bouchard, Merryn Kritzinger et Melissa Thompson

Performers:

Rahmane Belkebiche

Lydia Bouchard

Mary-Lee Brunet

Édith Collin-Marcoux

Chad Erick Conception

Danny De Matos

Véronique Giasson

Merryn Kritzinger

Lauri-Ann Lauzon

Kevin Jr Madripp

Guillaume Michaud

Laura Perron

William-Nicolas Tanguay

Yoherlandy Tejeiro Garcia

Staging : Lydia Bouchard et Merryn Kritzinger

Chorégraphie en collaboration avec les interprètes

Music : Jean-Phi Goncalves

Manifesto : Calamine

Costume design : Rémi van Bochove

Production management : Samuel Thériault

Artistic Coordination : Karine Perron

Graphic design La Résistance : David Hopkins

Graphic design flag : Jana Taillade

Les Visages de Montréal

Les Visages de Montréal is a creative appeal for solidarity for Montrealers. Everyone is invited to take part in this collective art work which will line the facades of downtown Montreal with thousands of portraits. This inspiring art work is part of Inside Out, a collaborative project launched by the French artist JR that has travelled to cities all over the world. Les Visages de Montréal will put the spotlight on the faces of Montreal, mobilizing some of the city’s key institutions and the public with an invitation to reclaim the downtown core. Watch for the photo booth truck that will be combing the streets all summer to take part in it yourself!

Credits

Creation : The Inside Out Project

Le sentier du cœur de l’île

Running through the heart of Montreal, from Atateken to Cabot Square, and from Sherbrooke to Old Montreal, a red line on the pavement connects close to 60 cultural spaces, forty public art works and temporary summer installations. Drawing inspiration from international projects such as Suivez la ligne verte in Nantes and the Boston Freedom Trail, this exploratory route invites you to explore over a hundred one-of-a-kind spots. Punctuated with the aventures du cœur de l’île’s 10 Oases, this unique tour engages the public in a fascinating, almost 15-kilometre long route.

CREDITS

Creation : Intégral Jean Beaudoin and Multimedia Nova-Lux

CULTURAL OFFER

From June until the fall, theatre, dance, music, circus, comedy, visual arts and digital art will all be presented, to help audiences and artists reconnect through art.

In addition, an original and engaging dance show by local artists will be presented spontaneously all season. The façades of some of downtown’s most iconic buildings will be the canvas for a major group art project featuring the faces of Montreal. To link the various activities, Oases, performance venues and activities organized by cœur de l’île partners, a walking route will create an enjoyable connected experience.

Full details of the program for Les aventures du cœur de l’île will be released in the coming weeks.

ABOUT AVENTURES DU CŒUR DE L’ÎLE

The result of a productive partnership between the Quartier des Spectacles and Montréal centre-ville, in collaboration with Tourisme Montréal and with the financial support of the Ville de Montréal, Les aventures du cœur de l’île is downtown Montreal’s summer relaunch project. Bringing together the cultural and economic sectors, the initiative features a variety of activities specific to the project as well as the partners’ programming. From Atwater to Papineau streets, between Sherbrooke Street and the St. Lawrence River, downtown is the setting for next-generation activities thanks to several new pedestrian zones, safe designs for public spaces, spontaneous performances and an enhanced cultural offer. From June to the fall, these initiatives will welcome Montrealers and residents of neighbouring regions to be part of the city’s revival and enjoy the Island’s wonders.

Further information : lecoeurdelile.com
Follow Les aventures du cœur de l’île on : Facebook | Instagram

PHOTOS and VIDEOS

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Please include full photo and video credits.

Press releases

Crowds and festivities returned to downtown Montreal this summer with Les aventures du cœur de l'île
14.10.21

Le sentier du cœur de l'île a new route takes you to downtown Montreal's hidden treasures
13.07.21

Les aventures du cœur de l’île invites Montrealers to a summer-long celebration of the performing arts in the downtown core
17.06.21

This summer, Les Visages de Montréal will grace the city's facades
14.06.21

Les aventures du cœur de l’île : a collaborative project for the revival of downtown Montreal
27.05.21

The Quartier des Spectacles Partnership and Montréal centre-ville: joining forces to make downtown the place to be this summer
18.03.21

Summary

Aventures du cœur de l'île

MEDIA CONTACT

Les aventures du cœur de l’île (cultural and artistic components and installations)
Mélanie Mingotaud
melanie@mingo2.ca
(514) 582-5272

Les aventures du cœur de l’île (economic and commercial components)
Dany St-Jean
dstjean14@gmail.com
(514) 212-5457