AZPML + KANVA win competition to revitalize montreal's biodôme

AZPML + KANVA win competition to revitalize montreal’s biodôme
image © AZPML + KANVA

in early 2014 the municipality of montreal, canada launched a competition series called ‘space for life‘, aimed at generating design proposals for three major cultural projects. one of these contests focused on transforming the city’s ‘biodome’, for which the collaborative team of architecture offices AZPML and KANVA has won the commission with a scheme titled ‘migration du biodôme’. the facility contains a range of replicated ecosystems that visitors experience on varying atmospheric and visual levels, while the renovation efforts will add new curving walls to reorganize circulation and produce more-immersive exhibits.

a rendered animation provides an immersive walk-through the proposed scheme
video courtesy of espace pour la vie montréal

the winning team’s design recognizes the facility as a ‘living habitat’ at its basis. mindful of this quality and also seeking to amplify it, the scheme inserts a variety of curved walls to enclose the ecosystem areas while featuring multimedia screens to display a range of environmental images. the team describes the core values for the biodome’s regeneration as, ‘creativity, sustainability, relevance, and transmission.’

AZPML and montreal-based KANVA are partnered with NEUF architect(e)s, bouthillette parizeau, and NCK for the renewal project.

the ecosystems combine physical, digital, and atmospheric conditions
image © AZPML + KANVA

the ‘space for life’ projects occur on the occasion of montreal’s 375th anniversary and are intended, ‘to rethink and revitalize the relationship between mankind and nature’. beyond the ‘biodôme renewal’, other competitions included the expansion and renovation of the existing ‘insectarium metamorphosis’ facility, as well as the design of a new glass pavilion at the city’s botanical garden. the total cost for the three projects is estimated at $45 million.

while originally constructed as a velodrome (arena for track cycling) for the 1976 olympic games, the large roof structure has housed the montreal biodome since 1992. the enormous shell includes a series of skylights that provide ample daylight to the facility.