The Ville de Montréal has announced on October 19, 2009 the winners of the design competition to develop movable street furniture elements for use by festivals. Among the five finalist concepts, the jury selected the proposal submitted by Morelli Designers and Signature Design Communication.

The concept submitted by Morelli Designers and Signature Design Communication stood out from the other proposals, among other reasons for the ingenuity and effectiveness of the anchoring system and mounting brackets, and its modular system of nesting ballast blocks. The jury also remarked on the great flexibility of the various elements.

“The concept is extremely simple from both the technical and visual standpoints,” explained Mario Gagnon, President of the Association des designers industriels du Québec and the jury Chair. “The movable furniture elements can be quickly installed by the setup teams, and will help prevent deterioration of the festival sites. The proposal is discreet, and respects the architectural concept of Place du Quartier des spectacles.”

The jury sought to underscore the innovative nature of the concept submitted by NIP paysage in collaboration with MOLO by awarding the firm an honourable mention. Jury members were impressed by its playful character and the poetic aspects of its image.

The jury members were:

• Ruedi Baur, designer, Intégral Ruedi Baur
• Radu Buruiana, consulting engineer
• Renée Daoust, architect and urban designer, Partner, Daoust Lestage Architecture & Design urbain
• Mario Gagnon, industrial designer, President of both Alto Design and the Association des designers industriels du Québec
• Tatjana Leblanc, industrial designer, Associate Director, GRAD (Groupe de recherche en aménagement et design) and professor, Université de Montréal School of Industrial Design
• Alain Petel, Commissioner, Culture, Bureau des festivals et des événements culturels, Ville de Montréal
• Pierre Raymond, Site Director, Les Productions Raymond inc.
• Michael Santella, industrial designer, professor of industrial design, Dawson College (DIBIS)
• Jean-François Jacques, industrial designer, Météore Design

Follow-up to the competition

The Ville de Montréal will issue a call for tenders between now and spring 2010 for the design and production of the winning concept. The company selected will be required to enlist the services of the winning firms for the technical development of the street furniture elements.

This design competition stems from the commitments announced by the Mayor of Montréal at the Pecha Kucha Night for Elected Officials on September 30, 2008. It aims to provide tangible impetus for creativity in made-in-Montréal design and architecture and to broaden access to public design commissions to the largest possible number of practitioners. The competition was run by the Design Montréal office of the Ville de Montréal on behalf of the Bureau des festivals et des événements culturels, Ville de Montréal, in collaboration with the Quartier international de Montréal and the Partenariat du Quartier des spectacles. To view the five finalist proposals, including the winning concept, visit realisonsmontreal.com.