Gatherings

Montréal and Dundee spotlight the outstanding work of designers and architects through a photo campaign

October 18, 2023

The cities of Montréal and Dundee (United Kingdom) are partnering on a simultaneous online campaign that aims to raise public awareness of the importance of naming design and architecture professionals when their projects are presented in the media.

Through series of photos under the theme Qui est l’architecte - le designer, an original idea launched by Kollectif in 2021, this new campaign highlights the work of the design teams who have collaborated on public and para-public projects in Montréal. Dundee, meanwhile, is rolling out its campaign using the hashtags #Whoisthedesigner and #Whoisthearchitect.

Context

Following adoption of the Montréal 2030 Agenda for Quality and Exemplarity in Design and Architecture, Montréal’s Direction Générale (the city manager’s office) issued a communications directive intended to ensure that the designers behind projects in the city are identified by name. To support adoption of that directive, the Bureau du design has launched an online photo campaign photo to raise awareness among members of the public, the professional community and city stakeholders and acknowledge the designers and architects responsible for public and para-public projects. The initiative encourages users to emphasize the importance of naming architects and designers in social media posts as well as news articles that talk about their work.

A further goal of the campaign is to create a ripple effect within the UNESCO Creative Cities Network, given that some member cities have shown interest in drawing inspiration from the exemplary practices implemented by Montréal to develop and support creativity and design-oriented thinking in their cities. An initial joint initiative is this fall 2023 initiative organized with Dundee, another UNESCO City of Design.

The Montréal photo series features seven public and para-public projects in the city that leveraged the talents of professionals working in the architecture and design disciplines (e.g., industrial design, graphic design, urban design, architecture, landscape architecture). The Dundee campaign, meanwhile, focuses on six projects, some of which are new and others which have been in place for some time, but all of which are part of the story of Dundee, a vibrant UNESCO City of Design.

One project will be highlighted per week until December 6, 2023. Explore them here as well as on social platforms!

Selection committee

The committee formed to select the projects featured in the Montréal campaign is made up of:

  • Francis Brisebois, Corporate Advisor – Design and Signage, Société de transport de Montréal
  • Marc-André Carignan, Manager, Multiplatform Content, Kollectif
  • Jonathan Cha, Team Lead, Planning and Conservation, Société du parc Jean-Drapeau
  • Sophie Charlebois, Architect, Service des grands parcs, du Mont-Royal et des sports – Division stratégie et développement du réseau, City of Montréal
  • Justine Leggett-Dubé, Design Commissioner, Service du développement économique, City of Montréal
  • Alejandra Lopez Mandujano, Planning Advisor, Service de l’urbanisme et de la mobilité, City of Montréal
Collaborators

This campaign was developed in collaboration with City of Dundee, UK, which was awarded the status of UNESCO City of Design in 2014, and with Kollectif.net, an online platform dedicated to  distributing news about and promoting architecture in Québec, and which instigated the photo series Qui est l’architecte - le designer in 2021.

To follow the campaign

Bureau du design de la Ville de Montréal : Facebook, Instagram 

Design Dundee : Facebook, Instagram, website

Kollectif : Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, website (in French only)

Partners