Architecture and Art
The station features art by Frédéric Back: a massive stained glass mural entitled L'histoire de la musique à Montréal ("history of music in Montreal"). The work is composed of thousands of layered pieces of glass backlit by 105 lighting tubes and supported by a tonne of steel. The glass surface is rippled, causing the brilliant colours to shimmer ethereally. The work was originally intended to be an homage to four important Quebec musical artists: the composers Calixa Lavallée, Guillaume Couture, and Alexis Contant, and soprano Dame Emma Albani. Unveiled on December 20, 1967, this stained glass was the first work of art to be commissioned for the Montreal metro system. In 2008 the lighting system was completely renovated by the lighting artist Axel Morgenthaler.
The second work of art is a hand-glazed ceramic mosaic by the artist Saskia Siebrand, installed in 2005. It contains tiles of over 300 colours, all custom hand-glazed.
Read more about this topic: Place-des-Arts (Montreal Metro)
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