MONTREAL/April 14, 2005—
On Monday, April 18, to mark World Heritage Day, Concordia University will hold two special events – a public forum titled Historic Interiors: a Heritage Worthy of Recognition and Protection, and the unveiling of 3 historic murals that were originally featured in the former York Theatre.
The forum, co-sponsored by Concordia and Heritage Montreal, will take place at 2 p.m., in the J.A. de Sève Cinema in the atrium of the J.W. McConnell Building (1400 de Maisonneuve Blvd. West). Christopher Jackson, Dean of Concordia’s Faculty of Fine Arts, and Dinu Bumbaru, Policy Director of Heritage Montreal and Secretary General of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) will co-host the forum, which will feature panelists from Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa.
Bumbaru says that “interiors are a relatively unknown yet remarkable and highly vulnerable aspect of our heritage which have received insufficient attention from all public and private stakeholders. We must examine what lessons can be drawn from current conservation projects and plan intelligently for the future”.
Following the forum at 5 p.m., Concordia will unveil the only three surviving murals from the eight original ones, once considered among the most remarkable features in any Montreal movie house. Removed from the dilapidated interior of the York Theatre, these canvases together with two groupings of exterior decorative panels from the 1930s building, have been restored and integrated into several locations in the new Engineering, Computer Science and Visual Arts Integrated Complex which now stands on the property once occupied by the York (entrance via Ste. Catherine and Guy St. Atrium). Francine Senécal, Vice-Chair of the Executive Committee of the City of Montreal and the councillor responsible for culture and heritage will be present at the unveiling of the murals.
The York Theatre was completed by Perry, Luke and Little Architects and included the decorative plans of Emmanuel Briffa (1875-1955), who had overseen the interior designs of more than 100 cinemas in Canada throughout his illustrious career. Briffa commissioned the murals from the artist, Kenneth Hensley Holmden (1893-1963) to complement the York’s Art Deco style. They adorned the walls of the theatre from its opening in 1938 until it was badly damaged by fire in 1989. When the University acquired the property in 1998, the murals were removed and stored pending treatment by renowned conservator, Laszlo Cser of Restorart.
Michael Di Grappa, Vice-President, Services, at Concordia, says “the restoration and integration of the York artifacts are another example of the University’s commitment to the display of public art in the Quartier Concordia. In addition to the unveiling of the Art-Deco-period paintings and the recent presentation of the 6,000 square-foot glass mural on Mackay Street, there remain a number of other magnificent works – historic and contemporary - slated for integration into this building in the near future. Stay tuned”.
Forum - Program
http://www.heritagemontreal.qc.ca/
http://www.international.icomos.org/
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Source :
Tanya Churchmuch
Senior Media Relations Advisor
Concordia University
