Building today, on yesterday, for tomorrow

THE ÉPERON BUILDING
THE ANCIENNE-DOUANE BUILDING
ARCHITECTS AND AWARDS

The Éperon building

By “memory” we mean all the work that allows us to preserve recollections of the past, that collective ability to recall the events that marked the founding of Montréal. To respect this memory, the architects took pains to fit the Éperon building into its existing architectural surroundings. The building is a splendid example of integration with its older neighbours; its contemporary architecture respects the proportions of the Royal Insurance Company building that previously stood on this site.

The Éperon building is an extension of all the façades along Rue de la Commune. It conforms with the historic quarter, matching the roof lines and the proportions of walls and openings. Its transparency actually enhances the heritage buildings surrounding it.

The tower of the building, with its characteristic and easily identifiable structure, becomes the central element of the Museum complex.

“The challenge was to build, and preserve at the same time. It was both inhibiting and stimulating,” recounts architect Dan S. Hanganu.

The focal point of the Museum is a contemporary building. This masonry structure was built on top of the underground remains, and the new elements are clearly identified. The Éperon building is supported on a complex system of piles penetrating right down to the bedrock. Its foundations are designed both to preserve the archaeological remains and to allow further exploration in future.

In various locations, openings in its walls give visitors a glimpse of the old foundations on which the new building was constructed. The Éperon building shows how the past and present can co-exist in harmony.

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The Ancienne-Douane building

The architects, LeMoyne Lapointe Magne, treated the Ancienne-Douane building like a monument. They managed to conserve its outside walls and its doors and windows, confining all changes to the interior.

The Ancienne-Douane building sits next to the foundations of bygone buildings and the remains of the first fortifications of Montréal. The building was almost square when it was first erected in 1836 by architect John Ostell. In 1881, as can be seen in the basement, it was expanded, the façade being moved several metres forward to de la Commune.

Aside from its Palladian style, the true interest of this old building lies in the textures, finishes, patinas and construction details that today’s architects have integrated into the new structure.

They breathed new life into this treasure and made it still more attractive, renovating in keeping with the tone of the original building.

Here the architects have employed transparency: keeping and exposing the existing framework. All the complex modern heating, ventilation, electricity, humidity control and fire prevention systems are discreetly integrated and hidden away in the attic.

In renovating the building, the architects managed to respect its character and adapt it to the needs of this modern museum.

From: Pointe-à-Callière: Experience the Past! Editor: Marc Boudreau. Contributors: Nicole M. Boisvert et al., pp. 30-35.

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Architects and awards

Senior architect, Éperon and archaeological crypt:
Dan S. Hanganu/Provencher Roy, architects

Consulting architect, Ancienne-Douane:
Lemoyne Lapointe Magne, architects and urban planners

Governor General's Medal for Architecture, to Dan S. Hanganu and Provencher Roy, architects, for the architectural quality of the Museum; the medal was presented to Pointe-à-Callière, 1994

Grand Prize from the Ordre des architectes du Québec, to Dan S. Hanganu and Provencher Roy, architects, for the Éperon building and the archaeological crypt, 1993

Orange Award from Sauvons Montreal, for the architecture of the Éperon building and its integration into the urban environment, 1992

Certificate of Excellence from Event Graphic Design, for the Ancienne-Douane building, in the Environmental Design category, 1992

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