The City of Westmount and the Westmount Historical Association have announced that they will be collaborating on a series of special activities to mark the 2007 edition of the Montreal Architectural Heritage Campaign — with emphasis on the work of this community’s most celebrated architect, Robert Findlay.
According to Westmount’s Community Events Department, events will consist of two walking tours, an exhibition of photographs and an architectural heritage quiz for children.
The walking tours will take place on Sunday, Sept. 30 beginning at 1 p.m. The first will examine Findlay’s contribution to Westmount’s public image in the form of a tour of his most familiar buildings — the Westmount Public Library, Victoria Hall and City Hall. The second tour will take a look at Findlay’s work in the eastern part of the city, including homes on Westmount, Cedar and Mount Pleasant Avenues. Admission is free, and no reservations are required.
A special commemorative guidebook will be provided to all participants in the scheduled walking tours. For those who miss the tours, copies of the guidebook will be available for sale at the Westmount Public Library and Victoria Hall for $2 each beginning Oct. 1.
The exhibition of photographs focusing on Findlay’s Westmount work will be displayed at the library from Sept. 20 to Oct. 6. Featured among the collection will images of architectural gems such as the Abe Bronfman house on Westmount Avenue and the W.M. Knowles house on Aberdeen Avenue.
Children aged 9 to 12 who live in Westmount or attend a local school will be able to participate in an architectural heritage challenge designed to test their knowledge of Findlay’s architecture in Westmount. Participants will be given eight short questions, and the names of those who answer them correctly will be entered into a drawing for a special prize. The contest form will be available online on the City of Westmount web site
www.westmount.org) and at the Westmount Public Library as of Sept. 20 and the contest itself will run through Oct. 6.
These activities mark the sixth anniversary of Westmount’s participation in Opération patrimoine architectural de Montréal, an annual campaign launched in 1991 that educates Montreal residents about the importance of protecting our architectural heritage and to recognize property owners’ efforts to maintain their property. Events similar to Westmount’s Findlay-related activities are taking place across the island throughout September and October.
For more information on these architectural heritage activities, contact Westmount’s Community Events office at 514-989-5226.
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