Videos - 350th’s Projections: the past comes to life on Saint-Joachim Church

Quebec City had its Moulin à images for its 400th anniversary, Montreal illuminated its Jacques-Cartier Bridge for its 375th anniversary. Not to be outdone, the animated façade of Châteauguay’s Saint-Joachim Church is ongoing for ten days, offering a poetic installation that oscillates between history and fantasy as part of the city’s 350th anniversary festivities.

Translation Amanda Bennett

The Lucion company, which was commissioned to produce this “Les Pierres Vivantes” (Living Stones) project, wanted to offer something educational without it being a documentary, by adding whimsical and playful touches, explained director Bernard Duguay in an interview.

“We thought it would be fun if it was a bit like a dream. If we had dreamed Châteauguay, what would it look like? A dream links many things together; things that are impossible, things that are possible and at the same time the emotion is there,” he said.

(Photo : Le Soleil - Valérie Lessard)

With the help of information from the City of Châteauguay and the Maison LePailleur, the team set about creating this fifteen-minute sound and light projection. “We identified 15 large pieces to illustrate. After that, we found iconography (images) and we mixed it in the big ‘microwave’ and someone animated it,” explained Mr. Duguay.

Alongside the collection of images, music was created to accompany the story. In fact, the narration is provided by Châteauguay native and performer Marie-Élaine Thibert.

Playing With the Architecture

An iconic heritage site in Châteauguay, Saint-Joachim Church was an interesting site for the project, according to the director. “The beauty of the church is that the stones are quite light. It gives an interesting texture,” he says. He is someone who likes to play with buildings’ architecture for animating the projections, and not just use it as a screen.

(Photo : Le Soleil - Valérie Lessard)

The team had taken several photos of the religious building to prepare the production. “We realized that the church was leaning backwards. I’d never seen that before,” he says. Duguay says the crew also climbed into the false ceilings and steeples of the church to cover the windows. “All the beams look like they have been chiselled with an axe. The ladders are made from a tree that was cut in half and they added rungs to it,” he said of the nearly 250-year-old venue.

The screenings will take place every evening until March 12th, at 6:30 pm and 7:30 pm.

The Lucion team will return to Châteauguay later this year to present a second project, this time planned at the Raymond-Laberge library. This one will be more contemporary,’ says Mr. Duguay.

(Photo : Le Soleil - Valérie Lessard)