Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Documentary freeze-frame. Community dialogue. Meeting with the residents of Île Verte
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Atelier Pierre Thibault
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Documentary freeze-frame. Community dialogue. Meeting with the residents of Île Verte
Photo credit:
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Documentary freeze-frame. Community dialogue. Meeting with the residents of Île Verte. Harnessing the power of abstraction in architectural expression, the reinterpretations served as conceptual canvases—inviting the Verdoyants to reconnect with their cultural and architectural heritage through a hopeful, forward-looking lens.
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Atelier Pierre Thibault
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Documentary freeze-frame. Community dialogue. Meeting with the residents of Île Verte. Harnessing the power of abstraction in architectural expression, the reinterpretations served as conceptual canvases—inviting the Verdoyants to reconnect with their cultural and architectural heritage through a hopeful, forward-looking lens.
Photo credit:
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Section. One idea involved transforming the typology into greenhouses to promote year-round food self-sufficiency—by replacing the cedar shingle siding with polycarbonate panels and using the existing roof ridge openings to regulate humidity.
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Atelier Pierre Thibault
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Section. Another concept explored the adaptation of a smokehouse into an artistic production space, with the addition of a few windows and the reuse of drying poles to support pottery, canvases, or photographic prints during their drying process.
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Atelier Pierre Thibault
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Section. A third proposal involved bringing one of the structures up to current fire safety standards, enabling the revival of traditional fish smoking while safeguarding its cultural and heritage value.
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Atelier Pierre Thibault
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Rendering. One idea involved transforming the typology into greenhouses to promote year-round food self-sufficiency—by replacing the cedar shingle siding with polycarbonate panels and using the existing roof ridge openings to regulate humidity.
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Atelier Pierre Thibault
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
The ephemeral work carried out on Île Verte proved remarkably fruitful: following the installations, several promising new uses were identified to help ensure the long-term preservation of the boucaneries.
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Julia Thibault
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Through conversations with the residents of Île Verte, several core values and community priorities emerged in connection with the project—chief among them a strong sense of solidarity, a commitment to food self-sufficiency, and a shared enthusiasm for cultural and artistic activities.
Photo credit:
Julia Thibault
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Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
After visiting the installations on September 11, 2024, residents began imagining new, personal uses for these iconic buildings—rekindling their attachment to this unique local heritage. Geneviève envisioned transforming her smokehouse into a chicken coop for her ten hens. Louise proposed repurposing one as a drying shed for Mijanou’s garlic harvests. Lyne suggested using a structure for storage—adding a practical dimension to this collective reimagining.
Photo credit:
Julia Thibault
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Though ephemeral by design, the project on Île Verte has left lasting and meaningful traces. Some of the installations remain standing, having been spontaneously adopted by the community, while others were dismantled—prompting reflection on their potential future. In a creative gesture to sustain public engagement, the municipality of Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs recently raffled off two of the structures to residents, free of charge. For the mayor, this initiative offers an original way to extend the dialogue around built heritage.
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Alexis Boivin
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
The Atelier Pierre Thibault will return to the island this summer to continue this conversation, following the many concrete ideas proposed by residents—particularly those centered on food autonomy, a pressing issue in isolated environments. More broadly, the project has sparked renewed appreciation for a threatened vernacular heritage, while encouraging the intergenerational transmission of knowledge linked to the boucaneries.
Photo credit:
Alexis Boivin
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
For the Atelier Pierre Thibault team, this collective experience reinforced their cohesion, nurtured their initiative, and deepened their commitment to an architecture grounded in lived experience and local realities. Above all, the project affirmed architecture’s role as a tool for social and cultural mediation—capable of opening spaces for encounter, remembrance, and imagination for the future.
Photo credit:
Alexis Boivin
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Architectural detail of the Île Verte Lighthouse. The Île Verte Lighthouse was the very first to be built along the St. Lawrence River. Constructed between 1806 and 1809, it housed several lighthouse keepers until 1972. It has been designated a National Historic Site of Canada since 1974, and since 2021, both the Lighthouse and the Lighthouse Station have been classified as heritage properties by Quebec’s Ministry of Culture and Communications. Today, it remains a prime destination for visitors from Quebec and beyond.
Photo credit:
Alex Lesage
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Architect Pierre Thibault at the Arsenale in Venice for the inauguration of the 19th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, curated by Carlo Ratti.
Photo credit:
Alexis Boivin
Collective Intelligence at the Heart of Adaptation at the Venice Architecture Biennale: Atelier Pierre Thibault and Residents of Île Verte Reinvent the Boucaneries
Atelier Pierre Thibault
Architect Pierre Thibault, accompanied by Atelier Pierre Thibault team members Étienne Bourgeois and Alexis Boivin, at the Corderie dell’Arsenale during the opening of the 19th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, curated by Carlo Ratti.
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Atelier Pierre Thibault
The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
L to R. Richard Paterson OBE with Ben Dobbin and Gregg Glass at VandA Dundee with The Dalmore Luminary 2025 Edition The Rare
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The Dalmore
The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
Detail of The Dalmore Luminary Series 2025 Edition The Rare
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The Dalmore
The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
The Dalmore Luminary Series No.3 2025 Edition
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The Dalmore
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The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
The Dalmore Luminary Series 2025 Edition The Rare
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The Dalmore
The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
Ben Dobbin with The Dalmore Luminary Series 2025 Edition The Rare at V&A Dundee
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The Dalmore
The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
The Dalmore Luminary Series No.3 2025 Edition
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The Dalmore
The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
The Dalmore Luminary No.3 Gregg Glass, Ben Dobbin and John Galvin
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The Dalmore
The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
The Dalmore Luminary No.3 Ben Dobbin Sketching
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The Dalmore
The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
Ben Dobbin and John Galvin working on The Dalmore Luminary Series 2025 Edition The Rare
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The Dalmore
The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
Making The Dalmore Luminary Series 2025 Edition The Rare
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The Dalmore
The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
Detail of The Dalmore Luminary Series 2025 Edition The Rare
Photo credit:
The Dalmore
The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
Detail of The Dalmore Luminary Series 2025 Edition The Rare
Photo credit:
The Dalmore
The Dalmore Unveils Collaboration with Foster + Partners’ Ben Dobbin on the Prestigious Luminary Series as 2025 Edition Launches in Venice
The Dalmore
Detail of The Dalmore Luminary Series 2025 Edition The Rare
Photo credit:
The Dalmore
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