Jardin botanique

Gardens of Light will be illuminating the Jardin botanique this year from September 1 to October 31. As part of its signature fall event, Espace pour la vie invites you to walk the paths of the Botanical Garden’s three illuminated cultural gardens. Don’t miss the Chinese Garden’s latest feature showcasing one of China’s greatest legends, the butterfly lovers.

At the Japanese Garden The cycle of the seasons

Japanese culture is marked by great sensitivity to the present moment and to the many signs of the changing seasons, with the impermanence of things making the transformations all the more precious. The illuminated Japanese Garden is a living work of art where the landscaping and the plants themselves, with their myriad forms and colours, take pride of place. The pine forest, dressed in the sounds of acoustic instruments representing the wind, offers visitors a moment of serenity.

At the First Nations Garden The rhythm of life

At the heart of the circle of the seasons of life, flowing one after another in an endless stream, the Moon marks time and sets the rhythm. Embodying the fundamental principles shared by Indigenous peoples and given voice by the words of Innu poet Joséphine Bacon and the songs of Moe Clark, the First Nations Garden’s illuminated path beckons visitors on an immersive and poetic journey into the circle of life.

At the Chinese Garden The legend of the butterfly lovers

In the middle of Dream Lake, the two most famous butterflies in Chinese culture have come to light on a luxuriant stand of lanterns. Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, the Chinese butterfly lovers, have transcended time, and this fall they have come to light up the Chinese Garden to the strains of the Violin Concerto, one of the best-known works in Chinese music. This beautiful, timeless legend has inspired and sustained people for centuries with its profound vision of love and life.

Timed tickets

Timed tickets, a popular and effective admission reservation system, are back. To make the most of your experience, you will have to choose a set time for your visit when purchasing your tickets. Your timed ticket will allow you to wander freely through the Jardin botanique’s three cultural gardens. It will also give you access to the entire Jardin botanique, which can be visited at any time on the same day.
Ticketing and schedule: espacepourlavie.ca/ticketing

Gardens of Light is funded in part through the Entente sur le développement culturel de Montréal between the City of Montréal and the Government of Québec.

La Presse, Partner of the Gardens of Light event

Throughout the year and through its programming, Espace pour la vie aims to contribute to reconciliation with First Peoples. Whether we're talking about our relationship with nature and the land, history, current realities, artistic creation,and the diversity of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples, many of our museums’ activities offer an opportunity for a significant encounter.

Learning, understanding, and engaging dialogue
One of Espace pour la vie museums’ missions is to raise awareness and educate the public. Through their respective programming, citizen participation projects, and artists’ residencies, the museums offer the opportunity to learn, understand, and engage in a dialogue with First Peoples.

Jardin botanique
June 21st, the public is invited to celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day at the Jardin botanique.

Special entertainment at the First Nations Garden and tasting of annedda tea, a symbol of First Peoples’ know-how and of mutual aid between nations.
1 - 4 pm | First Nations Pavilion | Free with purchase of ticket to the Jardin botanique

Special screenings of shorts films from Wapikoni Mobile selected by Indigenous curators, followed by a discussion led by the Indigenous ambassador and the guest filmmaker.
2 to 3:30 p.m. | Henry Teuscher Auditorium | Free activity

In addition to its permanent exhibition Knowledge and know-how, the First Nations Gardens offers a daily activity, Introduction to the Indigenous peoples of Quebec.

Inaugurated in August 2001, the First Nations Garden provides an opportunity to learn more about the rich cultures of the First Peoples of the Americas. It is worth noting that, when the garden was founded, a committee of First Nations representatives was formed specifically to work in close collaboration with the Jardin botanique on this project. Together, they set the direction and parameters for the design and creation of the site.

Biosphère
On June 21 and September 30, the Biosphère’s geodesic dome is illuminated in the evening to mark National Indigenous Peoples Day and National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Innu author Maya Cousineau Mollen was invited to come and work in the museum spaces, reflecting on environmental issues. Artist in residence for a year, she meets the public on a regular basis.
The outdoor exhibition Still, in motion presents two artists, including the work of Camille Seaman, of Indigenous and Afro-descendant origin.
As part of Cinéma sous les étoiles, two documentaries featuring indigenous communities will be presented: Coextinction on August 10, and Aquarela, L'Odyssée de l'eau on August 24.

Insectarium
The community science project Nunavik Sentinels is organized in Nunavik communities. It aims to teach younth aged 12 to 17 to inventory, preserve, and identify insects found in their environment, while at the same time giving them an introductory job experience.
This year, the project extends to the Chisasibi Resource and Research Institute to study insect diversity at their research station; to the Pye Center for Northern Boreal Food Systems in Happy Valley Goose Bay Labrador with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada to introduce Nunatsiavut youth to insects and discover the entomofauna of this region; and to the Pingualuit National Park Interpretation Centre to train youth in the collection, assembly, and identification of the park’s insects.
Schools in Nunavik were also contacted to offer insect-related activities.

Espace pour la vie, in collaboration with the National Film Board of Canada, is proud to present Regeneration, a contemporary digital art piece that tells the story of a phytoremediation research area at the Jardin botanique. The product of an art-meets-science collaboration, this work documents in real time the regeneration through plants of a plot of land.

The light and sound installation uses cameras and sensors to record the plant and environmental activity of an area of land, to show how, over the years, living organisms can act to restore the ecological integrity of an ecosystem. Both artistic and experimental, the work documents the renewed vitality of the land while demonstrating the decontamination potential of plants. Regeneration is a sensitive, stimulating and engaging experience that lets visitors witness the passage of time in plant terms.

At the crossroads of art and science

The piece was created through a close collaboration among artists Alexandre Burton and Mélanie Crespin, Jardin botanique researcher Joan Laur and the Jardin botanique’s museology team. The artistic installation includes a mobile made from bioplastic products derived from material collected at the plot. The lighting is modulated based on the digital data, showing a time-lapse view of the very slow evolutionary process.

The power of plants

The project is one in a series of phytotechnology stations that reveal the power of plants to solve a range of environmental problems. Regeneration showcases phytoremediation as a technique to decontaminate soil using plants. As the soil is re-oxygenated, life is restored – hence the title of the work.

“Phytotechnologies represent innovative solutions to conventional engineering approaches,” explained Jardin botanique director Anne Charpentier. “For several years, the scientists at the Jardin botanique and the Institut de recherche en biologie végétale (IRBV), along with specialists in landscaping, in horticulture and in museology at the Jardin botanique, have been working together on building a series of phytotechnology stations that integrate educational elements intended to explain the functioning and the role of plants there. With the phytotechnology stations, Espace pour la vie is demonstrating the full potential of plants for the ecological transition, one of the principal goals of the Montréal 2030 strategic plan.”

“Regeneration shows to what extent the encounter between art and science offers vast possibilities for creation and knowledge. At the NFB’s Interactive Studio, we support openness to new fields of experimentation and greater integration of practices for creators, resulting in works that explore innovative forms of storytelling. I also want to underscore the continuing collaboration with Espace pour la vie, which makes interactive and digital works even more accessible, as well as the collaboration with the Jardin botanique, which highlights environmental concerns that are crucial for the future.” – Louis-Richard Tremblay, Executive Producer, NFB French Program Interactive Studio