Client: Guido Molinari Foundation

Location: Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Completion date: 2013

Project Team

Architect

Stephane Rasselet

_naturehumaine architects

Artist

Guido Molinari

Overview

At his death, the minimalist painter Guido Molinari left as a legacy his former atelier/residence. Located in a former bank, the space would be used as a conservation and dissemination center for the artist’s creative work.

Goals

The exhibit space, located in the main hall of the former bank, faced two major constraints. Having two facades completely covered by windows, it didn’t have enough display surfaces. Also, some of the artist’s enormous paintings could only be stored within the space. The solution was to design three movable volumes that could contain large format paintings and be used as extra display surfaces. These storage blocks can be moved at will to create a multitude of configurations. In the exhibit space, all surfaces are painted in shades of grey. There are no black, white, nor color. Everything is calibrated to obtain the optimal perception of chromatic effects that Molinari was seeking with his paintings.

Process

One room is left intact : the studio where the artist was mixing his colors. Scrambled notes on the walls. Mountains of empty pots. Dirty sink. In the midst of this clutter, the artist created his pure geometric paintings. It is here, through this harsh contrast, that the presence of Guido Molinari survives the best.