Location: Québec, Canada.

Architect: Provencher_Roy + GLCRM.

The new reception pavilion of Québec’s National Assembly is an underground structure that modernizes the heritage site and provides citizens with a learning space. The entrance is integrated into the existing architecture, respecting the Parliament Building as the symbol of Québec’s identity. The addition of the reception pavilion became necessary due to outdated facilities, the need for more sittings of parliamentary commissions, and the increasing number of visitors. The 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. 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, and a long ramp 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 of Québec. The agora, a central place that symbolizes the democratic tradition of the National Assembly, fosters intersubjective dialogue that emphasizes democracy as an experience. 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. 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.

Photo credit: Provencher_Roy.