New massive ‘Ring’ art piece to be installed in downtown Montreal

A new grand art installation will be livening up Montreal’s downtown core this summer.

Measuring 30 metres in diameter and weighing some 50,000 pounds, “The Ring” will hover over the staircase of Place Ville Marie’s Esplanade.

The project was commissioned by real estate company Ivanhoé Cambridge and designed by architecture firm Claude Cormier.

“The goal is to really attract all kinds of people, everybody. We want to have a downtown area that is really alive and dynamic,” said the vice-president for the Quebec office of Ivanhoe Cambridge, Annik Desmarteau.

Preliminary work is already underway on the steel structure, which will hang between two buildings.

Desmarteau said the ring overlooking McGill College Avenue and Mount Royal is intended as a gateway to the city centre.

“It’s business, it’s tourism, it’s shopping, it’s people living. It’s the heart of Montreal where there is a beautiful energy,” Claude Cormier, lead architect and designer of the project, said.

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The goal of the imposing art piece is to beautify the face of Montreal while giving new vibrancy, vitality and appeal to the heart of the city, Cormier said, all while highlighting the city’s rich history.

“As a bold and lasting gesture for downtown Montreal, The Ring is part of the iconic axis of McGill College Avenue, where Place Ville Marie, McGill University, the former Royal Victoria Hospital and Mount Royal Park line up, revealing more than 200 years of our city’s history,” Cormier said.

Tourism Montreal, the Quebec government and the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal are among the parties financing the $5-million project meant to revitalize the downtown core, bringing people back to the city centre.

“Montreal and its downtown are catalysts for the Quebec economy. The business, cultural and tourism communities have acted quickly to bring life back to the heart of our metropolis,” said Chantal Rouleau, minister responsible for the metropolis and the Montreal region.

“A monumental installation like The Ring will have the power to attract visitors and will crown all the efforts made over the past two years.”

Cormier says The Ring will be illuminated once complete and is expected to be erected in June.

The Ring will be pieced together on site.

It will be heated to prevent ice buildup in the winter and will have vibration dampeners for strong winds and potential earthquakes.

A grand unveiling to the public is scheduled sometime in September.