On September 30, 2008, during the evening of the Pecha Kucha Montréal special edition for Elected Officials, the Mayor of Montréal, Gérald Tremblay, issued a creative challenge – the five shûko.
These shûko are design projects which will be overseen by Design Montréal, and produced through competitions for creative ideas or projects. Creative individuals, designers, urbanists and architects who are passionate about, and inspired by, the city’s urban environment will be invited to submit their innovative projects which will, in their way, change the face of the city.
This project came about as a result of Montréal’s nomination as a UNESCO City of Design, which established its position as a member of the international Creative Cities Network and underlined the dynamism of civil society and the public and private sectors with regard to design. When we work together, Montréal has the potential, the talent and the resources to become a true flagship city, uniting designers and creators in every project.
To achieve this goal, the mayor has now announced his unswerving determination to make Montréal, City of Design, a reality, and to act as a catalyst alongside the city’s designers. Through concrete actions such as the mayor of Montréal’s five shûko, and thanks to the ideas, projects and concepts of the creative community, Montréal will, more than ever, become a first-rate, inspirational, place to live; a city which will shine on the international stage.
By holding competitions to produce these shûko, the City and its partners are fulfilling their commitment to promote architectural and design excellence, as outlined in the Plan d’action 2007-2017 – Montréal, métropole culturelle. These projects will be carried out according to the design procedure presented in the Cahiers des bonnes pratiques en design urbain (Handbooks of Best Practices in Urban Design), co-published by the Ville de Montréal and the ministère de la Culture, des Communications et de la Condition féminine.
In order to choose the best projects to be carried out, the competitions’ structures, criteria and briefing documents are being defined in collaboration with the partners and the key stakeholders involved and will be launched in 2009 and 2010.
The 5 shûko
- Development of movable street furniture elements for use by festivals—competition launched on June 8, 2009
- Redesigning of the area around Champ-de-Mars metro station—competition launched on November 3, 2009
- Transformation of the east wall of the Palais de justice
- Design of a new bus shelter—competition launched on September 15, 2009
- Development of a distinct brand identity for Montréal’s taxis
