Screening-discussion | “Une tour sur la montagne:” Montréal between the wars through the eyes of Ernest Cormier

CIRM has the pleasure of collaborating with the McEwen School of Architecture for an evening of screening and discussion of the documentary film A Tower on the Mountain: the Architecture of Ernest Cormier and his life with Clorinthe Perron (in French with English subtitles), in the company of its Director Paul Carvalho, architectural historian Aliki Economides and guests. This event is part of the McEwen School of Architecture's "MSoA Winter 2023 Cultural Events" series. 

A Tower on the Mountain: the Architecture of Ernest Cormier and his life with Clorinthe Perron is a critical inquiry into the astonishingly rich and passionate life of French-Canadian artist, architect and engineer Ernest Cormier (1885-1980), who was among the most important architects in Canada during the first half of the 20th century. Having designed the iconic building of the University of Montréal as well as his idiosyncratic private residence on Mount Royal, the Supreme Court of Canada in Ottawa, and the doors of the United Nations permanent headquarters in New York, among other notable works, Cormier’s oeuvre and unorthodox lifestyle offer a vivid portrait of the sociocultural dynamics of Montréal during the interwar period, particularly with respect to issues of language, cultural identity, social class, gender and domestic life. 

Moderator: 

• Peter Sealy – Assistant Professor, J.H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design University of Toronto 

Guests: 

• Paul Carvalho – Film Director, Perception Films 

• Aliki Economides – Assistant Professor, McEwen School of Architecture, Laurentian University 

• Magda Fahrni – Professor, History Department, UQAM 

• Roderick MacLeod – Historian 

The documentary film will be presented in its original French version with English subtitles. The discussion will be in French, but questions and comments from the audience in English are welcome.