ART PAVILION
AT CITÉ-DU-HAVRE

SCULPTURES
GARDEN

BRIDGE-BONAVENTURE
PUBLIC PARK

museum
exhibitions
archives
cultural activities
public art
restaurant
store

REPURPOSING THE EXPO 67 ART GALLERY
INTO THE ART PAVILION AT CITÉ-DU-HAVRE,
A SPACE DEDICATED TO LES AUTOMATISTES
AND TO CONTEMPORARY ARTISTS

 

We propose the conversion of the former Expo 67 Art Gallery into the Art Pavilion at Cité-du-Havre.

 

Revitalizing this heritage building with a program of world-class exhibitions will highlight the contributions of local artists and firmly position them within global art history. This space will stand as a marker of national pride, rooted in our heritage and oriented toward the future.

PROJECT PRESENTATION

 

THE ART PAVILION
AT CITÉ-DU-HAVRE

 

Includes:
A cultural park;
A sculpture garden and public art installations
A refurbished Expo 67 pavilion
This historic building previously hosted the Expo 67 Art Gallery and The Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal from 1968 to 1992.

 

Our proposal complements the Bridge-Bonaventure Sector Development Plan of the City of Montreal. We want Cité-du-Havre to become an emblematic gateway for the city of Montreal and Parc Jean-Drapeau, a “cultural complex” akin to those found in major cities.
Our international references include:

 

The City of Montreal is planning to build 13,500 housing units in the Bridge-Bonaventure area. This significant influx of new residents will benefit from having access to a cultural and recreational park designed for tourists and Montrealers. The inclusion of the Art Pavilion is a valuable addition to the Bridge-Bonaventure development plan and will improve the quality of life for both current and future residents of the area.

 

The building in the Bridge-Bonaventure sector served as the Musée d’art de l’Expo 67 and, subsequently, as the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal from 1968 to 1992. The building, at 2190 Pierre-Dupuy Street, is now owned by Casiloc inc. (Loto-Québec) and was used as storage for the Casino de Montréal, between 1998 and 2023. No longer serving that purpose, and now considered surplus to the needs of the government corporation, the Québec government has authorized Loto-Québec to put the building up for sale.

 

Following its listing, various stakeholders spoke out, highlighting its heritage importance and its good condition. Designed by a major Quebec architectural firm, it stands as an important legacy of Expo 67.

 

Although the request to classify the building as a heritage site was not accepted in 2023, it remains an architecturally significant structure, located in an area of exceptional heritage value.

 

New possibilities are now being explored for its preservation and repurposing.

Our project meets several long term objectives of the City of Montreal, particularly the Bridge-Bonaventure Sector Development Plan:

 

  • the creation of a high-quality urban gateway to Montreal;
  • the development of a public green space;
  • the preservation of a heritage building, the Expo 67 Art Pavilion;
  • the creation of a cultural venue for the future citizens of the Bridge-Bonaventure area;
  • the conversion of the Expo 67 art museum into the Art Pavilion of Cité-du-Havre proposed by a consortium of cultural organizations for the dissemination of the arts;
  • the revival of Quebec’s most famous artistic movement, Les Automatistes;
  • the promotion of local and international artists;
  • a sculpture garden in the surrounding area.

 

The Art Pavilion is led by a consortium of autonomous cultural organizations composed of:

 

  1. The Jean Paul Riopelle Foundation;
  2. Les Automatistes space;
  3. René St-Pierre’s Documentation Centre on Les Automatistes;
  4. CIAC (Centre international d’art contemporain de Montréal);
  5. A sculpture garden.

Project team :

 

Claude Gosselin, C.M.
Project initiator
General and artistic director of
Centre international d’art contemporain de Montréal
www.ciac.ca
claude.gosselin@ciac.ca

Lucette Lupien
Committed citizen
Film consultant

Stéfanie Roy
Architect MOAQ

René St-Pierre
Archivist Archiv’Art
https://archivart.ca

Françoise Sullivan
Visual artist, choreographer and dancer
signatory of Refus global in 1948

France Vanlaethem
President Docomomo Québec, Prof. UQÀM.
https://docomomoquebec.ca

Yun Wang
Corporate Director
Museology student

Intern :

Nicolas Vignola-Goyer
Bachelor of Art History
Université de Montréal

Would you like to support the project?

 

We would be delighted to count you among our partners or allies by signing the register on change.org

 

Feel free to share the link to get more people involved.

  • Inauguration du MACM, 1968
  • Presentation_Pavillon-des-arts_Cité-du-Havre_20
  • Escalier central d’origine aujourd’hui démoli. À reconstruire
  • Espace ouvert au 1er étage (07-01-2025). Photo : Stéfanie Roy

La Presse published an article on April 12, 2025 in connection with this major project (in french only).

 

What future for a symbol of Expo 67? (Quel avenir pour un symbole d’Expo 67 ?)

Par Mario Girard

 

Extract from the article (translated) :

 

Cet édifice, conçu par Paul Gauthier, Gilles Guité et Gilles Côté, qui créeront avec Jean-Marie Roy l’une des plus importantes firmes d’architectes de Québec, est aujourd’hui la propriété de Casiloc Inc., filiale immobilière de la Société des casinos du Québec. The premises have long been used for equipment storage.

 

Today, one man dreams of reviving this place and restoring it to its original vocation. That man is Claude Gosselin, General and Artistic Director of the Centre international d’art contemporain (CIAC). Over the past few months, he has put together a project that, I must say, is very inspiring.

 

The idea is to use this building, designed for exhibitions (it has blind walls), as a space dedicated to Les Automatistes.