How do you address children at the same time as adults? Is it really possible? The competition documents specify that this new library must appeal to a family clientele. But how do you appeal to a family without infantilizing the parents? Marc Favreau seemed to know. Sol's absurd games and verbal acrobatics have lulled our childhood and crossed generational divides. The pleasure of playing is universal, and the most elementary games with the most minimal rules know how to captivate us.
Toddlers are given wooden blocks with the letters of the alphabet on their faces, to introduce them to language through play. Until the evening of their lives, they'll continue to line up numbers and letters on crossword, sudoku or scrabble grids. For the simple pleasure of playing.
Looking for Sol, I thought of another Sol, the recently deceased American artist Sol Lewitt, who turned games into an art form. What happens when you draw circles on a three-metre by three-metre wall for three hours without interruption? How many ways are there of joining a segment of circles and a diagonal within a square? He has devoted his life to providing answers to such questions, which nobody asks.
We saw an opportunity to imbue the Marc-Favreau library with this playful spirit by stacking blocks of alternating transparency and opacity on the six-metre by six-metre structural grid.
The treatment of the interior and exterior surfaces reflects this desire, from the perforated pattern on the surface of the aluminum cladding inspired by graffiti murals to the linear motifs on the floor, all borrowed from the formal vocabulary of Sol Lewitt, who refused to see his production as authentically unique works. Instead, he saw them as the result of verbal instructions entrusted to a variety of executors, which could be repeated with infinite variations.
We propose to adopt a similar attitude, without copying the works presented, in carrying out the project. The project also reflects the desire shared by all citizens to make the city greener, by obtaining LEED certification, generously planting the area around the library, landscaping a roof, but also by proposing for Luc-Durand Park pleated surfaces alternating grass and limestone to recall the presence in the subsoil of this fossiliferous sheet of stone once extracted from adjacent quarries, thus contributing to the birth of a neighborhood that would become the Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie borough.
(From competitor's text)
(Unofficial automated translation)
The members of the jury raised the following main points concerning FABG's performance following the project presentations:
4.1 Mr. Éric Gauthier's presentation was appreciated by the jury members.
4.2 The architectural approach inspired by play is remarkable and appreciated. Its simplicity and clarity are interesting features. The link with Sol is well expressed, although the intrusion of Sol Lewitt is questionable and somewhat disturbing in context. The game could have been less Cartesian, in Marc Favreau's view. The integration effort remains questionable.
4.3 The ground layout and landscaping are effective. It is technically unfortunate that the thermal envelope surface is so large in proportion to the footprint. The proposed layout leaves flexibility for other occupants of the site.
4.4 Its massing is interesting, but the building appears to be introverted. It has the same facades on the park as on the street.
4.5 The concern to keep the bicycle path clear is appreciated.
4.6 The frontage on Rosemont would benefit from being a little "quieter" for a better relationship with the 700. In addition, the main entrance should be better marked and protected.
4.7 The library's dialogue with the forecourt is difficult.
4.8 Despite the hesitation expressed by the designer during the interview, the jury is of the opinion that the letters in the glass walls should remain bold and assertive.
4.9 The choice not to segregate between generations is one that the client is prepared to take. However, the risk of targeting the wrong clientele remains to be assessed.
4.10 The functionality of the interior spaces is a great success. The entrance hall adjacent to the loan counter requires slight adjustment.
4.11 The playfulness announced from the outside has disappeared once inside: everything is white.
4.12 The glazed alcoves create an interesting addition of natural light. However, there is some concern about the technical execution of the building envelope and its impact on maintenance and costs.
4.13 The roof terrace is interesting, but poses a problem in terms of surveillance of the café located there. Relocation would be necessary.
4.14 The structural and electromechanical systems are simple, easy to build and operate.
(From jury report)
(Unofficial automated translation)
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