Canadian Residential Architecture, Quebec Student Housing, Building, Flats, Architect, Design, Images
Edison Residence
Canadian Student Residence in Montréal, Québec ? design by KANVA, architects
13 Nov 2016
Edison Residence in Montréal
Design: KANVA, architects
Location: 3525 rue University, Montréal, QC, Canada
Edison Residence in Montréal
A small vacant lot located at the epicenter of Montreal student life, just north of the McGill University?s Milton gates, was the basis of the latest design by KANVA.

The site endured a fire in the early 20th century, which flattened the existing 19th century historic stone house; this tragedy represents only one of many narrative layers embedded in the land. The historical context of the site became the primary inspiration for the urban renewal project, which lead to the exploration of an innovative concrete fabrication technique; photoengraved concrete panels that enabled the building to tell a story. The project encapsulates an architecture ?parlante?; an architecture that heightens the intellectual and perceptual experience of its inhabitants by stimulating active looking.
The film sequence photoengraved into the concrete façade is extracted from the sequence of stills from the film: Montreal Fire Department on Runners (Edison, 1901). The film was carefully chosen for both its historical and contextual relevance: referencing the fire that vacated the site and highlighting the prolific inventor Thomas Edison, an important c...