OAQ Awards Two Grand Prix d’Excellence

The term “Grand Prix” implies one winner rising above the rest, but in 2023 the OAQ jury decided to award two grand prizes: one to the redesign of the Insectarium, part of the Space for Life complex in Montreal; and the second to the renovation of the Centre Culturel Desjardins in Joliette, in southwest Québec. For the first, the jury “was impressed by the immersive exhibition route, part of which invites visitors to discover insects through the perspective of their environment,” and for the second they “hailed the high-quality restoration of the Beaux-Arts–style auditorium.”

Another change to past years was the elimination of category prizes (Cultural, Single-Family Residential, etc.) “to encourage the nomination of smaller projects and those that are more difficult to categorize.” The jury thus evaluated submissions “as a whole, using criteria that, among other things, reflect the Ordre’s vision of socio-ecological transition.”

In addition to the ten awards of excellence, listed below, the jury awarded four individual distinctions to individuals and firms "for their commitments to inclusivity and quality in Quebec architecture." These included a posthumous Médaille du Mérite, OAQ’s highest distinction, to Claude Provencher; the Engagement Social Prize to Lafond Côté Architectes; the Relève en Architecture Prize (for emerging architects) to NÓS; and the Ambassadeur de la Qualité en Architecture Prize (given to a non-architect who champions architectural quality) to Marie-Josée Lacroix, Montreal’s first design commissioner.

The jury was chaired Renée Daoust (Daoust Lestage Lizotte + Stecker Architecture) and consisted of Laure Waridel (UQAM Institute of Environmental Sciences, Journal de Montréal), Isabelle Beauchamp (Blouin Tardif Architectes), Rami Bebawi (KANVA Architecture), and Vladimir Topouzanov (Saia Barbarese Topouzanov architectes). 

Visit the OAQ website to see more images of the winning projects and read comments from the jury (in French).

INSECTARIUM METAMORPHOSIS

• Design: Kuehn Malvezzi / Pelletier De Fontenay / Jodoin Lamarre Pratte architectes in consortium
• Client: Space for Life
• Location: Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Montreal

CENTRE CULTUREL DESJARDINS RENOVATION

• Design: Atelier TAG
• Location: Joliette, Lanaudière

NEW SPORTS AND CULTURE CENTRE, COLLÈGE NOTRE-DAME

• Design: ACDF Architecture
• Client: Collège Notre-Dame
• Location: Montreal

COLLÈGE DUROCHER SAINT-LAMBERT

• Design: Atelier Pierre Thibault
• Client: Collège Durocher Saint-Lambert
• Location: Saint-Lambert, Montérégie

COMPLEXE DES SCIENCES – CAMPUS MIL

• Design: Menkès Shooner Dagenais LeTourneux | Lemay | NFOE Architectes
• Client: Université de Montréal
• Location: Outremont, Montreal

ESPLANADE TRANQUILLE – QUARTIER DES SPECTACLES

• Design: Les architectes FABG
• Client: City of Montreal
• Location: Montreal

INSTITUT QUANTIQUE

• Design: Saucier + Perrotte architectes
• Client: Université de Sherbrooke
• Location: Sherbrooke, Estrie

CARLIER HOUSE

• Design: yh2 – Yiacouvakis Hamelin Architectes
• Clients: Lisa Wolofsky and Joey Mastrogiuseppe
• Location: Montreal

JEANNE-MANCE HOUSE

• Design: La Shed Architecture
• Clients: Valérie Zaphiratos and Félix Robitaille
• Location: Montreal

MB

• Design: Studio Jean Verville architectes
• Clients: Benjamin Boller and Mathieu Denécheau
• Location: Montreal