GRANDS PRIX

Grand Prix Landscape & Territories

Project Espace 67

Canada

By

Lemay

Québec, Canada lemay.com

A Remarkable Space-Time Bubble

This multihyphenate concept resulted from a transdisciplinary collaboration between architecture, landscape architecture, branding and graphic design. The result is a vast redevelopment of a portion of Expo 67’s emblematic site in Montreal.

ECHOING THE PAST’S AVANT-GARDISM The series of grandiose gestures put forward by Lemay echoes the avant-garde architecture of the time, creating a place of wonder in the heart of Parc Jean-Drapeau.

MAKING SHAPES TALK The language of forms reveals the quality of the built and natural environment as well as the historical aspect and the genius of the place. The backbone of the site, its main walkway, creates a visual and thematic link between the Biosphere, the metro station entrance and Calder’s Three Discs sculpture.

A PLACE FOR ART The project also includes the enhancement of three works of art that will be installed in various areas of the site. Unobstructed views of the riverbanks and the river guide visitors through a space-time bubble inspired by the spirit of innovation and openness rightly associated with Expo 67.

THE NOSTALGIA OF THE LAND Wishing to increase the biodiversity and the presence of native species of the site, representative landscaping treatments, adapted to the environments and uses and a strategy for the conservation of natural resources were put in place. Creating landscaped atmospheres that are inspired by the character of the place, the new Espace67 captures the spirit of the time and the picturesque character of Frederick Gage Todd’s original landscape design.

Grand Prix Landscape & Territories

Project Étang de la Maison de l’Arbre Frédéric-Back

Canada Québec, Canada waa-ap.com

Creating a Healthy Ecosystem

Alas, a wetland transformed at the beginning of the millennium into an artificial pond was invaded by undesirable plants which transformed it into a colonized and closed marsh. The mission, here? To revive the Montreal Botanical’s Garden’s pond into a healthy one.

ECOLOGICAL MORPHOLOGY Several factors essential to the health of water bodies were considered by WAA+ in the concept of this new pond, such as oxygen rates, sunlight exposure and prevailing winds, the presence of thriving aquatic grass beds, and the optimal ratio of aquatic plants to open water. Together, these factors will condition the composition and morphology of the entire layout.

AT WORK! The perimeter of the pond was therefore lightly enlarged in order to better connect it to its immediate environment, and its bathymetry was greatly modified to ensure favorable banks for the establishment of aquatic plants and areas of open water. The perimeter is surrounded by a submerged gabion path to be taken during maintenance operations.

Assisting banks, densely populated with various native plants, in their filtration role, are floating and vegetated coconut fiber rafts and islands.

MARRIAGE WITH THE ENVIRONMENT The planting also sculpts the landscape thanks to the mobility of the vegetated islands that animate the painting. As for the pond’s upstream waterfall, it enhances the soundscape magically and supplies the pond with fresh, filtered water. Amen!

NAMASTE Offering places to sit in contemplation of nature, universally accessible welcoming ramps and cozy platforms dress up the space. Frédéric Back would be quite proud.

Grand Prix Landscape & Territories

Project Parterres en courtepointe

Canada Québec, Canada robitaillecurtis.com

How To Make a Luscious Garden Quilt

SYMMETRY & HARMONY Immersive, the approach to the house brings guests through a stunning contemporary entrance parterre where symmetry and chromatic harmony temper the abundant aerial blooms of pink astilbes, liatris and hydrangeas. A graphic alignment of stepping-stone that intersects the brickwork contributes to the rhythmic configuration of textures.

GREEN ROOM A clever outdoor setting adjacent to the kitchen is formalized in front of the house, highlighting its existing crabapple tree and framed by the light foliage of a native serviceberry hedge that screens parked cars.

OUTDOOR LIVING In the rear yard, a convivial living room provides soothing views and the warmth of a fire table. A refined dining room, set on natural stone paving, is conveniently sited directly outside the kitchen door. An intimate hidden garden screened by a row of Japanese maples is revealed on axis with the door and features as its focal point, a family heirloom fountain.

STANDING THE TEST OF TIME The garden is enchanted by mature maples, birches and spruce trees that already formed a pleasant border, hornbeams, Japanese maples, serviceberries, eastern redbuds, yews and a wide variety of perennials brilliantly incorporated in the spirit of English cottage gardens.

This harmonious quilt of durable materials and plant textures created by Robitaille Curtis magnifies the property’s elegance and promises to stand the test of time. This Tudor-inspired cottage home offers a lush and invigorating canvas of rich textures. Its series of spaces, each offering a distinct atmosphere, weaves a vibrant and coherent grid that welcomes a variety of uses.

Grand Prix Landscape & Territories

Canada

By

Vertige paysage

Québec, Canada vertigepaysage.com

In the Midst of a Forest

In designing this dreamy landscape, the vision was to kneel before nature’s majestic nature and embrace its geography to magnify and beautify it.

UNDER THE CREATIVE LENS The embrace of the site’s topography and the conservation of key Quebec forest environment elements such as trees and stones support the intention and create a place of experience that juggles brilliantly between the wooded cover and the landscaped garden.

THE MATERIALS THAT ENTER THE DANCE The choice of materials was studied to weave a link between the context of insertion and the architecture which blends in gently. The same goes for the layout lines, which relax the further they move away from the house in order to dialogue with the organic atmosphere of the forest and to offer a walk that crisscrosses the site. A TOUCH OF NIGHT BLUE IN THE PANORAMA An infinity-type swimming pool highlights the wooded canopy which is reflected in the water. Acting as the backyard’s focal point, it offers a visual spectacle upon entry and contributes to the relaxation area ambiance, adjoining the house.

IN ORGANIC HARMONY Here, ornamental and native plants cohabit beautifully in the landscape design imagined by Vertige paysage. Together, they form a green ensemble well mastered by man, yet wonderfully authentic. Namaste!

Grand Prix Landscape & Territories

Project Résidence La Sportive

Canada

By

EVOQ Architecture de paysage

Québec, Canada evoqarchitecture.com

Taming Nature’s Wild Side

This Lac Saint-Joseph residence in the Capitale-Nationale is located in a green setting where you can admire, from one surprise to the next, the landscaping created for an athletic, to say the least.

THE STARTING LINE From the outset, EVOQ Architecture de paysage took care to give guidelines for the layout of the house, according to the enhancement of the natural landscape and outdoor spaces. The approach was based on a careful evaluation of the views to preserve and those to hide in order to optimize the near and distant perspectives of the residence.

A GREENERY SETTING Once arrived on site, the green setting integrates the wooded area, the monumental trees and the low plantations, and directs our gaze towards the house’s wonderful.

The landscape architect also proposed a paving with clear geometric shapes, and tones reminiscent of those of the house punctuated by portions of perfectly mown lawn. A REINVENTED SPORTING FIELD A large sports area is set up on the garage’s roof hidden in the land’s topography. The client can choose to indulge in basketball, hockey or tennis there, day and night, and even enjoy music blasting out of its integrated sound system!

TREES IN THE FRONT ROW The landscaping project’s objective was to minimize the felling of trees as much as possible. Mission accomplished! Other large trees have also been added to harmonize with the current wooded area and preserve customer intimacy. Alleluia!

Grand Prix Landscape & Territories

Project Jardin de sculptures Evolo X

Canada Québec, Canada robitaillecurtis.com

A Walkway of Waves Receding

At the threshold of a high tower surrounded by dense residential development, lives a green and inviting place for the community. Here is an elegant sculpture garden that reinforces the distinctive character of a prestigious Île-des-Sœurs address.

THE VALLEY IN ALL ITS BEAUTY Designed to showcase the famous artist Linda Covit’s sculptures as much as the ecosystems of the Laurentian Valley, the forecourt of the Evolo X Tower welcomes residents and visitors with elegance and freshness. Winding paths lined with organically sculpted embankments direct walkers to the entrance.

THE WATERS OF THE ST. LAWRENCE The sculpture’s motifs echo the ripple effect of the St. Lawrence waters, which runs along the site, As for the plant palette chosen by RobitailleCurtis, it recalls the promontories and coastal meadows’ natural ecosystems. EVOLO X’ S FOUR SEASONS While crabapple, serviceberry, hawthorn, narcissus and squill offer the first spring flowers, salvia, thistle and echinacea brighten up the supple carpet of grass in summer. When fall comes, the red maples warm up while the junipers, spruces and scarlet twigs of the dogwood trees enliven the white of winter.

SPOTLIGHT ON ART On the ground, cobblestones give the impression of waves receding from the shore, while accentuating the effect of chiaroscuro in the space, prolonged, in the evening, by carefully planned dramatic lighting.

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