Architectural installation exploring the sound phenomena specific to architecture.
Grant: Architectural research grant from the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec
Designed specifically for the mythical studio of architect and engineer Ernest Cormier, a precursor of modernity in Quebec, it was presented there for 2 days in the summer of 2017.
The spectator, without having seen the space before, is invited to circulate in the rooms through a tunnel plunged in the dark. The majority of visitors have some prior indirect knowledge of the building, which is renowned but few have visited, which already influences perception. A programmed choreography of familiar sounds and air movements, combines in the space different positions and levels of intensity, from inaudible to saturation.
Emitted by common objects, domestic fans, it allows an acoustic reading of the architecture of the building. These noises and displacements both inform the body of the physical characteristics of the space and evoke uses, activities, encounters, both now and as a reference to the rich history of the place. Upon exiting the tunnel, the studio can, in contrast and comparison, be perceived with all the senses.
The Studio Ernest-Cormier is an artist's studio built by architect Ernest Cormier in 1921-1922 on land adjacent to the École des beaux-arts de Montréal. The building has been classified as a heritage building since 2016.
The creation of this work was made possible by the financial support of the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec.
