Opening of the Pierre Lassonde pavilion 

on June 24, 2016

the official opening of the new Pierre Lassonde pavilion, the fourth building of the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec (MNBAQ) complex, on Friday June 24, 2016. A symbolic date to inaugurate a world-class pavilion which celebrates Québec art and artists. 

On June 24, 25 and 26, the MNBAQ offers 3 days of free festivities and the numerous activities 

• On-site activities
• A medium-length film shown continuously on the architecture of the new building
• Cocktail-hour culinary experiences by Marie-Chantal Lepage 
• Live evening entertainment

visit the Pierre Lassonde pavilion free of charge and discover this architectural masterpiece, a world-class building signed by the architectural consortium OMA (New York) in collaboration with Provencher_Roy architectes of Montréal. 

5 new exhibitions will be opened in the pavilion of contemporary and present-day art:

• Illipounga: The Brousseau Inuit Art Collection
• From Ferron to BGL: Contemporary Art in Québec
• Decorative arts and Design in Québec
• Installations: On a Large Scale presented by TD
• Jean-Paul Riopelle: Tribute to Rosa Luxemburg 

PIERRE LAPOINTE, OFFICIAL SPOKESPERSON

The artist Pierre Lapointe, a lover of the visual arts, architecture and design, is the freshly-minted spokesperson who will promote the opening events for the Pierre Lassonde pavilion. His sensibility for art in all its forms, coupled with his love of Québec City and the MNBAQ, made him a dream ambassador. Proud to contribute to this great nation-building project, his job is to summon all of Québec to discover the Pierre Lassonde pavilion, the flagship of the MNBAQ’s new museum complex. 

A popular celebration

To mark the inauguration on June 24, 2016, the Québec national holiday, a participative artistic experience conceived and staged by the playwright and theatre director Alexandre Fecteau will take place on Cartier Avenue and the Grande Allée. One can already picture this extraordinary open-air market whose stalls and kiosks will become by turns outdoor exhibition galleries, dance floors and even spaces for theatrical and musical performances. Visual artists, actors and vendors will merge as participants experience memorable personal and poetic adventures. 

HUMANORIUM

Humanorium, a project by EXMURO arts publics – specialists in multidisciplinary arts projects in urban public space for more than ten years – is a contemporary art event piloted by the curators Ève Cadieux and Vincent Roy which will take the form of a strange travelling fairground inspired by nineteenth and twentieth century tradition. The event will be a great open-air popular gathering with extensive public participation. This original and festive experience is an invitation to the public to discover the work of contemporary artists in unique surroundings. Mounted in partnership with the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, the event will present the work of a dozen renowned creators who explore what it is to be a human being today. 

ORCHESTRAL WORK

The very first orchestral work for architecture commissioned by a museum, Voir dans le vent qui hurle les étoiles rire, et rire, will be another key moment in the summer program. Premiering at the Musée, this new piece by the renowned composers Yannick Plamondon and Symon Henry will be inspired by the architecture of the new pavilion. Next September, audiences will be able to attend the presentation of this work for a large string orchestra, solo percussion and electronic instruments and stroll around the musicians of the Orchestre symphonique de Québec, conductor Fabien Gabel and the marimbist Anne-Julie Caron, taking their places for the occasion on the monumental staircase of the Pierre Lassonde pavilion

THE PIERRE LASSONDE pavilion, a showcase for québec artistry

One of the Musée’s goals in building the Pierre Lassonde pavilion was to make it a living, vibrant venue where everything would be possible for creators in Québec. The first year’s cultural programming at the Musée will showcase unrivalled creativity! Numerous cultural partners are joining forces with the MNBAQ to offer original projects and thus help create a year of abundant and diverse activities. 

Among the partners who have confirmed their participation in this cultural showcase:

• Bibliothèque de Québec
• Club musical de Québec
• Conservatoire de musique et d’art dramatique du Québec
• Festival de la BD francophone de Québec
• Festival de cinéma en famille de Québec
• Festival de cinéma de la ville de Québec
• Festival d’été de Québec
• Festival International du Film sur l’Art (FIFA)
• Les Incomplètes
• Maison des métiers d’art de Québec
• Orchestre symphonique de Québec
• La Rotonde
• Théâtre Blanc
• Théâtre des Fonds de Tiroirs
• Théâtre PÀP
• Théâtre Périscope
• Théâtre Sous Zéro
• Trois Tristes Tigres
• Université Laval
• Les Violons du Roy

Refurbishing the Central Pavilion

In order to carry out the extensive preparatory work required for the opening of the Pierre Lassonde pavilion, the Musée will be closed from May 23 to June 24. 

 

The central pavilion, the glass pyramid, will see major changes. The Paul Rainville Salon will be combined with the Musée gift shop to become the Family Gallery. (The Pierre Lassonde pavilion will be home to the future Musée gift shop.) The exhibition Home sweet home, an artistic project for young children by the company Les Incomplètes, will delight families from June 24. 

The auditorium will also undergo a facelift (new carpets in the aisles and acoustic walls, reupholstering of the 174 seats) to become the Multi Gallery, an event space with all the cutting edge technology. 

The transformed pavilion will also host David Altmedj’s monumental work The Flux and the Puddle, seen as a summing up of the work of this Montréal sculptor, the best known and most sought-after of his generation.