How Montréal’s department of culture tackled pandemic isolation
Project: reducing social isolation through the ‘Our Homes’ programme
The Purpose
The Nos Maisons project was developed in collaboration with Montréal’s Maisons de la Culture Network. Montréal’s Cultural Department and the City’s 19 boroughs worked together on the ideation, planning and implementation of the project. Nos Maisons was funded by the City of Montréal and the Government of Québec.
The Challenge
The programme Nos Maisons (Our Homes) was introduced in response to the social and cultural isolation many people in Montréal were feeling during the initial lockdowns of the pandemic. Montréal’s Department of Culture wanted to find a safe and creative way to bring citizens together and create spaces for collaboration and resource exchange between local government, artists and arts organisations, and the City’s population who were confined to their homes.
The programme Nos Maisons (Our Homes) was introduced in response to the social and cultural isolation many people in Montréal were feeling during the initial lockdowns of the pandemic.
The Solution
A call for projects was announced in the fall of 2020, inviting artists to respond to the theme ‘Our Homes’ and to think creatively about how to encourage local participation and engagement. Particular emphasis was on submissions from artists of diverse backgrounds and on projects that proposed innovative ways to reach vulnerable and under-served populations, including disabled residents, young people and seniors, unhoused people, new residents, and indigenous and aboriginal communities. The project was developed remotely in a unique collaboration within Montréal’s Maisons de la Culture Network, using new digital collaborative tools, pooling resources, and sharing experience and expertise.
The Impact
The 11 selected projects were carried out by the artists and cultural organisations working in close collaboration with residents. Montréal’s Maisons de la Culture Network provided support for the development and the realisation of the projects, as well as helping them reach the target populations and adapt their activities to the local context.
The projects took various forms, both online and in person, following local and national public health guidelines. These included new maps and trails through different neighbourhoods, opportunities for residents to discover new cultural spaces throughout the city, residencies, workshops and participatory digital art projects.
Source: World Cities Culture Report 2022
Image Courtesy © Getty/Canva
