Last spring, the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec organized a multidisciplinary competition to design the future Espace Riopelle, a pavilion dedicated to the work of Jean Paul Riopelle, integrated into the existing architectural complex. The creation of the new building aimed to propel the MNBAQ into the future, by creating a true crossroads, a place of convergence within its museum campus. It had to completely renew the museum experience, magnify the premises by placing the human being at the center of this new adventure, in a space conducive to encounters, and increase accessibility to the national collection.
“I don’t take from nature, I go towards nature.” – Riopelle was a man of movement who constantly invented and reinvented his formal language. The Riopelle pavilion must, in our opinion, be in harmony with the energy and audacity of this immense artist. Bézier curves are parametric polynomial curves developed to design automobile body parts at the turn of the 1960s for Citroën and Renault. Knowing Riopelle’s love of beautiful cars, this detail becomes a source of inspiration.
These curves are present in some paintings, as signs and codes that tell, in symbolic form, episodes of the artist's life. The Bézier curves are a source of inspiration for the volume of the building to be constructed. They create a dialogue in contrast with the existing pavilions, which are organized according to classical architectural schemes. The form contributes to the heterogeneous character of the whole and guarantees a strong, distinctive and identifying architectural signature.
The project proposes a landscaped ascent that invites, from the central square, to climb onto the roofs to reach a unique point of view allowing to grasp, in all seasons, the immensity and power of the site. A linear path recalling the language of the shore, a place of stranding on the edge of the river composed of sand, gravel, driftwood and grassy fields. The accessibility of this roof terrace ensures the renewal of the public and allows the building to engage generously with the community.
“He bought Le Serica from Matisse. Matisse passed on to him his love of sailing and luxury cars, which became a sort of refuge for Riopelle.” – Like a large sail undulating on the river, the project takes on a light, diffuse and mysterious envelope. Serving as a filter, sun protection and energy control, the covering is a metaphor for the artist’s long paintings, evoking Riopelle’s multi-layered work. It consists of a high-performance wall, made partly of insulated steel panels and curtain walls, the whole being covered with a PTFE membrane veil (high-strength Teflon) stretched over an aluminum structure.
The result is a double skin whose energy performance will allow heat recovery and contribute to achieving the desired LEED level. The space between the two walls of the double skin is sized to allow the passage of a worker. This space facilitates the maintenance of the wall components and structures, the cleaning of the windows and the maintenance of the integrated lighting fixtures used to illuminate the architectural object at night. This textile architecture is reminiscent of indigenous nomadic architecture during hunting and fishing periods. The suggested lightness brings a notion of movement and migration, expressed in a contemporary way. The play of cables that holds the stretched canvas in place also echoes the Inuit “Jeux de ficelles”, Ajaraq, dear to Riopelle.
A form that embraces and echoes the roundabout of the avenue. A volume that welcomes and establishes relationships with the curved paths of the Parc des Champs-de-Bataille. A signal building that dialogues with the Wolfe monument. A materiality suggesting an unfolding canvas, a sail calling for travel and adventure.
The new structure offers large windows that encourage greetings as well as transparency towards the river from the axis of Wolfe-Montcalm Avenue. The volume floats above the old pavilion and destabilizes the visitor. The circular geometry suggests gathering and meeting like a comforting embrace.
The esplanade is partially covered to protect visitors from the elements and to allow activities to take place. The wooden underside is reminiscent of the hull of a ship on dry land. A grassy terrace offers a place for groups to gather while providing contact with the welcoming nature.
The discovery of the artist's works takes place in a series of curved museum spaces, intimately arranged in relation to the river and the park. This route begins from the main hall and draws a large circular movement investing the entire architectural project to form a loop. It brings the visitor back to his starting point by making him discover the artist's works.
The main hall, repositioned to include the end of the tunnels of the Baillairgé and Lassonde buildings, becomes the new crossroads of all circulations. It brings together the front and rear entrances of the museum, redefining the beginning of the museum itinerary, and in particular the new Riopelle experience.
As soon as the visitor exits the tunnels that emerge from the other pavilions, he or she is drawn into a common area of the main hall. This space initiates the journey to the Carrefour Riopelle, an ascent to an artistic universe that intimately combines architecture, encounters and immersion in the landscape.
This space, marked by steps related to the café, encourages the cohabitation of customers. Arranged on different levels, it establishes a feeling of recognition and education on the artist's career.
Through the climb, the landscape is revealed and establishes a progressive dialogue, amplifying the direct link between nature and the river. The visit ends with the masterful staircase bringing the visitor back to the main hall while offering alternative visits to the other pavilions.
The Carrefour Riopelle connects the Revendiquer room to the upper level. This room ensures a continuous link in the itinerary by providing access to the reference exhibition room. The immense room is the culmination of the artist's main work, with its flexibility and straight walls allowing for an effective museological presentation. Equipped with an architectural envelope ensuring efficient light management and control of museum conditions, the reference room allows visual contact with the outside world over almost 360°.
At the climax of the visit to the reference room, the visitor arrives at the artist's major work, *Homage to Rosa Luxemburg*. Arranged in two hemicycles, the immense painting unfolds on curved surfaces sized according to the work and offers views of the landscape and the river. The reading and discovery of the work can then be done according to the artist's original conception, the first two paintings of the triptych being read from left to right and the third from right to left.
The Nordicness of the project is expressed by a warm interior in response to the cold climate. A shared imaginary ideal of memories of fishing and hunting in search of this autochthony, a summer cabin by the water or a winter refuge in the forest.
The typologies resonate and inevitably inhabit the Nordic imagination. The work on the interiors recreates new atmospheres through unusual shapes and clear circulations that innovate the museum experience. Characterized by the whiteness and warmth of wood, the atmospheres are inspired by themes dear to Riopelle: river ice, the river and nature.
A third cultural place that creates and animates the life of the Espace Riopelle. The crossroads democratizes the artist's work and acts as a link between cultural actors, the community and the territory. Composed of large levels, the space is flexible according to the desired rotation of paintings and ceramics.
An elevation that gives way to a surprising, vegetal and sculptural terrace. Partially covered, the intermediate zone allows natural light to enter the interconnected spaces of the foyer and the multipurpose room. This new Pellan Garden, generously given to the public, is located at the heart of the activities and offers an imposing view.
The project proposes lighting of the main exhibition room. The illumination of the wooden underside generates a floating effect and evokes the artist's play of layers and strata. The double skin is illuminated through its thickness to highlight its undulating form and textures. The system offers control to modulate the intensity and color of the lighting in order to make it a means of expression to animate the large canvases and make it a place in motion.
A generous intermediate space connects the spaces and allows the exhibition of Riopelle's immense painting, *Le Bestiaire*. The use of the double height (8m) allows the work to be included in the Riopelle itinerary, which would not have been possible given the height of 5m for the reference exhibition room.
Moments to establish a meaningful contact with the works and access a universe that requires attention, a slower pace and reflection. A connection between art and nature that allows us to pause. Openings to the outside and presenting the landscape, like framed works.
The aerial lighting paradoxically evokes the absence of matter. Surrounded by a blurred zone of light, the silhouette of Espace Riopelle becomes a footprint on the ground. A visual effect leaving a negative, almost stifled trace, like the artist's aerosol work.
Source: Architizer.com
