Montreal convent pews reborn as design objects for Matière Sensible

During Montreal Design Week, curatorial collective Nouveau Milieu presented Matière Sensible, an exhibition of furniture, decor, and conceptual works made from red oak pews salvaged from the Convent of the Franciscans in Montreal's Rosemont-East neighbourhood. The project is part of a larger adaptive reuse initiative by local non-profit Entremise, which purchased the early-20th-century convent and, with material consultants Surcy, is selling architectural elements to fund arts programming. Fourteen designers participated, including Samuel Chevalier, Giuseppe Arcuri, Jean-François Gagnon, Zelie Delespierre, Alex Lazarey, Shahneli Mejika, Millor Studio, Igor Zigor, Trousseau, Jeremy Le Chatelier, Émilie Godin, Jérémie Dussault-Lefebvre, and Sébastien Roy. Works ranged from minimally altered seats and desks to fully remilled forms, stained or charred surfaces, and devotional objects like incense holders. Émilie Godin's floor lamp incorporated sheet music between bent wood slats. Structural tests by Dussault-Lefebvre and Roy explored the wood's load-bearing potential. The exhibition ran from 1 to 3 May in the convent's vaulted cloisters. Photography by Margaux Pommier.