PHI Contemporary

Kuehn Malvezzi, together with Pelletier de Fontenay and Jodoin Lamarre Pratte architects, will plan and realize the conversion and new construction for PHI Contemporary. An established cultural institution that is focused on the public engagement with art and culture, PHI Contemporary’s new permanent spaces situated in the historic neighbourhood of Old Montreal will combine three historical buildings with a new construction. At the centre of the new design is the understanding of the art institution as an active entity that is being formed in real time, open and in a state of permanent transformation. Planned as an infrastructure rather than a building, it is conceived as a simple and solid framework, a contemporary stage for hosting a range of activities. The ensemble will have a strong public character, consisting of a multilayered landscape of rooms and spaces that are all connected by a public space, a forum where conversations on contemporary culture can take place.