PHI Contemporary | International Architecture Competition

PHI is pleased to announce the launch of an international architectural competition for the design of PHI Contemporary - a cultural institution in Montreal, dedicated to exploring the contemporary through public engagement with art and culture. 

Founded by cultural protagonist Phoebe Greenberg, PHI is an ever-evolving cultural infrastructure dedicated to supporting art and artists probing key agendas of our times, and the mutual - and radical - accessibility between them and the public.

As a future repository for PHI’s legacy, PHI Contemporary will be a new and permanent space to consolidate, extend and intersect PHI’s cultural offer, its communities, and the public life of the city.

Located in Old Montreal, and built upon a site rife with history - comprising an assemblage of four historical buildings and an adjacent vacant lot - PHI Contemporary will consolidate the public cultural offer currently housed within PHI Foundation and PHI Centre. The 6 900 m² / 74 000 ft² project will house exhibition spaces, a network of new media galleries, mediation, research and studio spaces, and an expansive public domain.

The projected construction budget is CAN$47,280,000, excluding taxes and inflation.

Competition Process & Schedule

The international architecture competition will be held in three stages, following an open call for candidature, as follows:

Call for Candidature
International call for candidature
Aug 25 - Oct 14, 2021

Stage 1: Strategic Proposals
Development of Strategic Proposals by ten (10) Competitors, selected by the Jury
Nov 22, 2021 - Jan 20, 2022

Stage 2: Architectural Proposals
Development of Architectural Proposals by five (5) Finalists, selected by the Jury
Feb 14 - Apr 7, 2022

Stage 3: Completed Proposals & Multidisciplinary Team Dossiers
Development of Completed Proposals and presentation of Multidisciplinary Team dossiers by two (2) Grand Finalists, selected by the Jury
May 9 - Jun 16, 2022

Announcement of the Winner
July 15, 2022

Eligibility

The objective of the Competition is to select the lead architect for the realization of PHI Contemporary on the basis of the quality of their design concept, design approach and multidisciplinary team.

Any Architect who meets the following criteria is eligible to enter the Competition:

• Is a member in good standing of the professional order or national association governing architectural practice in the country in which they operate;
• Has at least 10 years experience practicing architecture;
• Has completed a minimum of two (2) projects in the cultural sphere;
• Has completed at least one (1) project involving the renovation or restoration of heritage buildings.

A consortium is eligible to submit if it demonstrates that it is composed of entities that have completed at least one project together prior to submission.

Remuneration

Participants will be remunerated for stages 1, 2 and 3 of the competition, as follows:

Call for candidature: No fees or remuneration will be issued in connection with the call for candidature stage.
Stage 1: CAN$65,000
Stage 2: CAN$200,000
Stage 3: CAN$75,000 + CAN$75,000 for the multidisciplinary team’s participation in this stage

Jury

Amale Andraos, Architect 
Principal WORKac; Dean and Professor, Columbia GSAPP

Elizabeth Diller, Architect
Partner, Diller Scofidio + Renfro

Miles Greenberg, Artist

Phoebe Greenberg
Founder and CCO, PHI

Jacques Lachapelle, Architect 
Professor, Université de Montréal School of Architecture

Ippolito Pestellini Laparelli, Architect, Curator
Founding partner, 2050+

Jean-Michel Othoniel, Artist

Dan Stubbergaard, Architect
Founder, Cobe

contemporary.phi.ca