The Fondation du Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec has launched its major fundraising campaign

The $170-million target marks a historic moment in cultural philanthropy in Québec

QUÉBEC CITY, Sept. 26, 2024 /CNW/ - The Musée national des beaux‑arts du Québec (MNBAQ) today launched the biggest fundraising campaign in the history of cultural philanthropy in Québec. Pierre Lassonde, John R. Porter and Manon Gauthier, representing the Jean Paul Riopelle Foundation, and Christiane Germain, Jean-Luc Murray, Julie-Anne Vien, and Fabrice Alcayde, representing the MNBAQ and the Fondation du MNBAQ, attended the event.

During this significant philanthropic event, philanthropist and collector Pierre Lassonde, who successfully conducted the major fundraising campaign for the pavilion that bears his name on the Grande Allée, urged the Québec business community to step up and contribute to this new fundraising campaign to enable the MNBAQ achieve its ambitions and Québec art to broaden its influence at home and abroad.

Individuals deeply devoted to art

The members of the campaign cabinet, who will watch over the destiny of the MNBAQ and the Fondation du MNBAQ through their exemplary commitment, have been announced. Four co-chairs will head the cabinet: Grégoire Baillargeon, President, BMO Financial Group, Quebec; Christiane Germain, Co-Chair, Germain Hotels; Kim Thomassin, Executive Vice-President and Head of Québec, CDPQ; and Geneviève Turbide-Potvin, Senior Vice-President, Commercial & Private Banking 1859, Québec & Eastern Ontario, National Bank. The other official members who will participate in the campaign's success are: Claude Bigras, Director, President and CEO, GDI Integrated Facility Services; Dr. Marc Guérin, Medical Executive Director, diaMentis; Martin Lavigne, First Regional Director, Quebec, Scotia Wealth Management - ScotiaMcLeod; Nochane Rousseau, National Managing Partner, Clients & Markets, PwC Canada; J.P. Towner, President and CEO, RONA inc.; and Julie- Anne Vien, Managing Partner, NATIONAL Public Relations.

By setting an ambitious objective of $170 million, including the historic donation by patrons of the arts of works from the Jean Paul Riopelle Foundation worth $120 million and an exceptional contribution of $20 million for the construction of the building devoted to Riopelle, which will cover not only the construction of the Riopelle Space* and the implementation of all the attendant activities, but also the creation of the MNBAQ's education through art centre, a unique, inclusive creative laboratory in Québec, to be installed at the heart of the Charles Baillairgé Pavilion (formerly the Québec City prison).

Two major donations are being officially announced to launch the campaign

BMO is giving $1.5 million to the Fondation du MNBAQ

Grégoire Baillargeon, President, BMO Financial Group, Quebec, was especially proud to announce a major donation of $1.5 million to the Fondation du MNBAQ.

"Riopelle is a cultural icon. Through his involvement in the Refus global movement and in the movement of Les Automatistes, he shaped our history far beyond the fine arts. Even today, his work continues to resonate the world over. This project will enable generations of Quebecers to discover and celebrate his timeless heritage here at the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec. Bank of Montreal is proud to contribute to the project and thus help to preserve the work and memory of an outstanding figure in Québec's heritage," noted Grégoire Baillargeon, President, BMO Financial Group, Quebec.

The Fondation du MNBAQ has received a $500 000 donation from Claude Bigras and Andrée Lafleur

The Fondation du MNBAQ is also proud to confirm a $500 000 donation from Claude Bigras and Andrée Lafleur. It is in an individual capacity that the President and CEO of GDI and his wife are offering this substantial contribution.

"This contribution is closely tied to the power of art on our well-being, a deep-seated conviction. The future pavilion and the creation of the MNBAQ's education through art centre fill me with enthusiasm. I hope that this contribution will serve as an example in our community so that everyone who has the means to do so can ensure the vitality and long-term survival of the MNBAQ and its many projects," Andrée Lafleur said.

The MNBAQ's new education through art centre

Put the human element front and centre in the MNBAQ's future

Following the example of major museums the world over, the MNBAQ will establish a unique research, education, and cultural mediation laboratory to promote educational activities devoted to the MNBAQ's five priority sectors: the family, the school environment, the adult clientele, the cultural sector, and the community sector.

The education through art centre, located in the Charles Baillairgé Pavilion, will offer an array of activities and create pilot projects focusing on research and innovation by drawing inspiration from best practices from cultural mediation though the arts.

Innovation centred on programs that foster inclusion and accessibility for all communities will underpin its practices, including the philosophical approach, wellness through art, or sensitive mediation based on the senses and emotions. This effervescent hub will welcome visitors of all ages and from all backgrounds. It will be open to regular visitors and those with specific needs, indeed, clienteles that are excluded from the museum experience.

The education through art centre will also be open to researchers, educators, partners from the cultural community, and artists. This unique, stimulating facility will also encompass national archives and a library, an innovation laboratory, and a new exhibition space.

To find out more about the education through art centre:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KguR03hZYhc

The Riopelle Space*, an exemplary project

The building will take shape this fall

Since the construction site was launched last May, CONCREA, the construction firm, has been active. The demolition of the Central Pavilion and excavation will be completed this fall. The celebrated skylight, a symbolic link between the Gérard Morisset Pavilion and the Charles Baillairgé Pavilion since the 1990s, will be replaced by the clean lines of the future modern building.

The Riopelle Space* will be worthy of the outstanding site on which it is built, the Plains of Abraham, and its technological and innovative features will surprise the public.

Aside from a space devoted to art, which will house an extensive collection of works by painter, sculptor, and engraver Jean Paul Riopelle, and the unique sensory experience of his masterpiece, L'Hommage à Rosa Luxemburg, the new focal point of the MNBAQ museum complex will also propose unique, vast, inspiring spaces that open out onto the park and will feature digital art and outdoor installations that will ultimately make this meeting place a key venue in Québec City when it opens in 2026.

The new pavilion will also be the gateway to the MNBAQ's education through art centre devoted to research and education that seeks to heighten awareness among all clienteles of the importance of art in our society.

The Riopelle Space* has a budget of $84 million, with contributions from several public and private partners, i.e., the Québec government, Québec City, the Jean Paul Riopelle Foundation, and the Fondation du MNBAQ. It will meld perfectly with the existing museum complex and become a harmonious link between the Gérard Morisset Pavilion, the Charles Baillairgé Pavilion, and the Pierre Lassonde Pavilion in addition to enhancing the experience of visitors and all art enthusiasts.

Enthusiastic reactions:

"Today, I am happy to pass the torch to a new dynamic campaign cabinet, which will undoubtedly succeed in enabling the completion of the future Espace Riopelle*, a project that is so close to my heart! Philanthropy is essential in our society, it has the power to change people's lives. It is our duty, within our financial means, to give back and improve the lives of others. I already thank those who will contribute to making art more accessible to all, and at the same time making this museum a formidable hub of culture in Quebec."

- Pierre Lassonde
- Founding member, Jean Paul Riopelle Foundation

"Thanks to this ambitious fundraising campaign, the public will not only have the privilege of exploring Riopelle's significant artistic universe by delving into his fascinating creations, but they will also have a unique experience in the future state-of-the-art building and the new Arts Education Center. Riopelle dared to dream great dreams. Let us take inspiration from him and together, we will reap the fruits of the collective efforts made to make this campaign a success."

- Michael J. Audain
Chair of the Board of Directors and co-fonder,
Jean Paul Riopelle Foundation

"This historic major fundraising campaign will mobilize businesspeople throughout Québec. It will alter our museum complex, which will place the human element and innovation at the heart of its experience with the establishment of the future education through art centre and the construction of the Riopelle Space.* All of us who have committed ourselves to the project intend to make it a resounding success. Rest assured, we will put more art in your lives."

- Christiane Germain
Chair of the Board of Directors, MNBAQ

"Today, the Fondation du MNBAQ is launching an unprecedented campaign by mobilizing the business community and Québec as a whole to transform the MNBAQ. The objective is at once ambitious and stimulating and we are privileged to be able to count on the commitment of a campaign cabinet that is already at work to oversee this vision and make our dreams and projects a reality. I would like to pay tribute to the invaluable contribution of our ambassadors and emphasize, in particular, our co-chairs' leadership, exemplary nature, and impetus in the context of this historic fundraising campaign."

- Julie-Anne Vien
Chair of the Board of Directors, Fondation du MNBAQ

The Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec is a state corporation funded by the Gouvernement du Québec.

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SOURCE Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec