Biodome Science Museum

Housed in the former Velodrome, constructed for the Montréal 1976 Olympic Games, the Biodome opened in 1992 and is a jewel in the crown of a consortium of facilities that collectively account for the most visited museum spaces in Canada. After winning an international architectural competition in 2014, KANVA was commissioned for the $25 million project. KANVA’s mandate was to enhance the immersive experience between visitors and the museum’s distinct ecosystems and to restore dignity to the heritage building. In doing so, KANVA embraced the role that the Biodome plays in sensitizing humans to the intricacies of natural environments. The architecture, conceived for both humans and other living species, became a choreographed sequence of moments that inspires responsibility towards the environment. KANVA began by understanding the tremendous complexity of the building, a living entity comprised of ecosystems and intricate machinery that is critical to supporting life. They designed with a global strategy that required coordination of numerous delicate micro interventions. KANVA targeted spaces that could be transformed in ways that would valorize the building’s architectural heritage. By carving of a new core and gutting the existing entrance ceiling, they opened the space skyward to the building’s extraordinary heritage roof, composed of massive skylight panels that infuse an abundance of natural light. With an open space now forming the core between the ecosystems, KANVA parametrically designed a living skin, an emblematic feature that could wrap around the ecosystems and serve as a guiding accompaniment to visitors. With exceptional structural engineering, the prefabricated, pure white, biophilic skin harmoniously interacts with the skylights above. The membrane takes on many forms, its lightweight structure preventing unnecessary demolition of the heritage structure. Conceptually, KANVA focused its attention on soliciting senses. The new core amplifies the sensorial experience of visitors transitioning from its pure neutrality to the multi-sensorial discovery of its adjacent ecosystems. KANVA transformed the existing linear path of discovery into a dynamic experience. The entry tunnel features a subtle floor incline, intended to slow movement through a compressed white passage, and to void the mind for fresh sensory input. The undulating living skin funnels visitors into a 10-meter tunnel leading to the central core. Once in the central core, slits in the living skin, called eco-transits, lead visitors to explore the Biodome’s five ecosystems, including Tropical Rainforest, Laurentian Maple Forest, Gulf of St. Lawrence, Sub-Antarctic Islands, and Labrador Coast. Vertically, the transformation added a new level above the ecosystems, accessible via walkways. The mezzanine serves as a technical floor, with interactive educational exhibits offering insight into the elaborate machinery required to maintain the facility’s delicate ecosystems. KANVA’s careful interventions maintained the essence of the original building while generating novel experiences. The revitalization of the Biodome proposes to rethink the relationship between humans and nature and to re-examine the educational and cultural potential of a public cultural institution. The project has provided the firm with invaluable knowledge, preparing them for future projects where architecture becomes a tool to promote and facilitate environmental change.