Monday, November 14, 2016

MMFA 2016 - Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion

INAUGURATION OF THE MICHAL AND RENATA HORNSTEIN PAVILION FOR PEACE
DEDICATED TO INTERNATIONAL ART AND EDUCATION

November 4, 2016

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts' new pavilion will be opening to the public on November 19, 2016.

FREE VISIT: November 19, 2016 - January 15, 2017

MICHAL AND RENATA HORNSTEIN’S GIFT
The pavilion is named for collectors and patrons Michal and Renata Hornstein, both of whom passed away earlier this year. In 2012, they donated seventy‐seven Old Masters paintings to the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Recognized as the largest private donation in the modern history of museums in Quebec, it is a unique legacy for the MMFA, Montreal, Quebec and Canada. Subsequent to this major donation, the museum received a $18.5‐million grant from the Quebec government to build a new pavilion for Montreal’s 375th anniversary. Along with their previous gifts to MMFA, this couple, who survived the Holocaust and immigrated to Montreal in 1951, donated some 100 paintings, in addition to their other major financial contributions to the Museum, and to education, and also to healthcare in their adopted city.


With the addition of close to 5,000 square metres on six floors, for a total area of 53,000 square metres, the Museum, which is experiencing rapid growth with two expansions in five years, has doubled its visitors and expanded its size by 30%. The Montreal architectural firm TAG, in consortium with Jodoin Lamarre Pratte, was chosen in a competition which took place in 2013 to design the pavilion. Its architectural quality upholds the Montreal’s position and commitment as a UNESCO Design City. The artistic direction and exhibition design was supervised by Nathalie Bondil in collaboration with Sandra Gagné, and with the support of Hilliard T. Goldfarb and Sylvain Cordier.




STRINGENT MANAGEMENT: ON TIME AND ON BUDGET
Work was on time and on budget. The total cost of this project was $25 million. The construction costs for the Museum’s two most recent pavilions were significantly lower than those of other Canadian museums: $505/sq.ft² for the Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion for Peace and $577 sq.ft² for the Claire and Marc Bourgie Pavilion of Quebec and Canadian Art. Like the Pavilion of Quebec and Canadian Art, the building’s design respects sustainable development and energy efficiency standards.



The Museum also established a self‐financing fund with the contributions from the private sector, and notably from Michal Hornstein. With this new method, the investment earnings from the fund will cover all operating costs. The MMFA ranks first among Canadian museums for its percentage of self‐generated revenues (55%).




The photos show fine examples of classic perspective used in designing architectural elements of the new pavilion.



Thanks to a new major gift from a patron (Michel de la Chenelière), two floors of the new pavilion will house, in addition to the existing workshops in the Desmarais Pavilion, the new Michel de la Chenelière International Atelier for Education and Art Therapy, bringing the number of the MMFA  educational workshops from 7 to 12. Several new logistical spaces will also embrace educational activities, whose numbers are growing and are now the highest in Canada. This is the largest education dedicated space of its kind in any art museum in North America.



Inauguration of the new Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion took place on November 4, 2016, in the large open area on the pavilion's ground floor. The photo below shows the white ribbon cutting ceremony.


Click on images to enlarge them.
Hover your mouse over images for description and credits.

For more information about the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts exhibitions, visit the museum's website.

You can also read about the art at the new MMFA Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion for Peace and the publication about it in these two articles:

MMFA 2016: New Pavilion - International Art Collection


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