The reception pavilion of Québec’s National Assembly

The reception pavilion of Québec’s National Assembly PARLIAMENT BUILDING The new reception pavilion of Québec’s National Assembly and the expansion of the inner courtyard serve to modernize the heritage site and grant citizens access to a bold and impressive learning space. Discreet from the exterior, the reception pavilion will be built underground, beneath the Parliament Building’s facade. The entrance will seamlessly integrate into the existing architecture, below the monumental staircase, thus respecting the Parliament Building as the symbol of Québec’s identity and preserving the iconography and layout of the Parliament gardens. The facilities of the National Assembly were slowly becoming outdated and in need of revitalization. Following the parliamentary reform of 2009, ambitious goals had been established, notably in order to allow more sittings of parliamentary commissions and to give citizens, who were visiting in increasing numbers, greater access to the National Assembly. As well, the security systems in place were no longer adapted to the latest technologies in use and it was becoming urgent to update them to reflect global security concerns. The addition of a reception pavilion thus became inevitable. However, it was just as necessary to preserve the Parliament Building, a historic monument designed by Eugène-Étienne Taché, and to showcase it. Its facade depicts the history of Québec, and is one of the rare facades in the world to boast such an iconographic narrative. Our solution was to create an underground reception pavilion nestled beneath the existing staircase and to link it to an entrance with an elevator, located in the inner courtyard, to allow access to the upper floors. Surrounding the entrance, support spaces have been set up. In their entirety, the new structures account for an expansion of 5,100 m2, while completely preserving the heritage context and the interpretation of the Parliament Building. The entrance to the reception pavilion draws the public to the facade. This becomes the starting point of a long ramp that organizes the project’s spaces, with a wood wall that picks up the narrative inscribed on the Parliament Building through images reflecting the milestones of the history—modern, this time—of Québec. Distributed along this ramp are spaces dedicated to security, reception, services and teaching, as well as commission rooms. These spaces are anchored around an agora, a central place that symbolizes the democratic tradition of the National Assembly. Dominated by a giant oculus through which visitors can view the National Assembly’s central tower, the agora—whose volumes are inspired by the Pnyx of Ancient Greece—fosters intersubjective dialogue that emphasizes democracy as an experience. It also evokes the way democracy initially manifested itself. With its gentle slopes and simple lines, the agora is in marked contrast to the National Assembly’s other locations and serves as a gathering spot where boundaries separating any particular groups present therein are blurred. Here, architecture truly is a tool for communication, playing a vital role in raising public awareness of democracy and its culture. PROGRAM, SITE, AND URBAN CONTEXT RESPECTING THE EXISTING BUILDING AND TOPOGRAPHY The guiding gesture in this project is a 300-metre ramp tucked underneath the existing stairs, enabling the preservation of the landscape and enhancing the public’s proximity to the heritage facade. This ramp, meant as a statement for a more accessible democracy, organizes the programmatic and functional elements of the project. The reception, security, registration, cloakroom, public forum, multifunctional hall, tunnel and commission rooms are organized along its path, which is defined by a continuous wood wall. Taking advantage of its underground context, the ramp forms the central traffic of the project, while simultaneously shaping the agora, articulating a space where the visitor’s experience is more important than the exterior appearance of the building. This agora serves as the central anchor and formal expression of the visitor immersion. As an abstract and neutral space, it is meant to foster impartiality and community through its circular form. The choice of the circle, a shape without a predetermined direction, is carefully reflective of this desire to express democracy as an experience rather than a trajectory or destination. As such, the several oculi in the project allow direct views of the existing facade while bringing natural light into the spaces. As the visitors move down, the ramp openings in the wood wall allow them to travel from the neutral agora to more programmed and determined spaces. This is characterized by the change in colour, from white to red or blue, a reference to the existing Salon bleu and Salon rouge in the National Assembly.