"In its renovation for FOIL Gallery, the architects at Atelier L'Abri approached the building lightly. Paint was removed from timber and concrete until the surfaces regained their depth. The floor kept its cracks and stains, a record of use that felt right to preserve. Instead of forcing a new identity, the design lets the building speak in its original tone."
"The early 20th-century factory was once used by Canadian Explosives Limited, and was shaped by heavy labour for wartime production. Inside, the sawtooth roof and its clerestory windows are supported by a complex system of timber trusses, now interwoven with exposed systems. Fresh skylights reinstate daylight across the sawtooth roof profile. The effect is quiet but direct - light drops in from above, highlighting the span of the trusses and the muted texture of the exposed materials."
FOIL Gallery occupies two former early 20th-century factory buildings in Montreal's industrial Mile-Ex, retaining the site's lowkey, workshop-filled atmosphere. The original factory served Canadian Explosives Limited and bears a sawtooth roof with clerestory windows and a complex timber truss system now interwoven with exposed mechanical systems. Renovation by Atelier L'Abri took a light touch: paint was stripped from timber and concrete, floor cracks and stains were preserved, and fresh skylights restored daylight across the roof profile. A brushed metal cube houses private rooms and guides circulation, while white acoustic perimeter walls provide consistent exhibition surfaces and anchor the interior visually.
Read at designboom | architecture & design magazine
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]