Joëlle Perron-Oddo has been Heritage Montreal's Activities Coordinator for three years. Returning this month from maternity leave, she talks to us about her job, her aspirations for our educational programs, her memories of architecture and heritage, and much more. Welcome back, Joëlle!
Heritage Montreal and you
Can you introduce yourself quickly (your studies, your background...)?
I began my university studies in journalism. I dreamed of reporting on the whole world and being a new female (and feminist!) version of Albert Londres. Following a serious injury, I took a break and decided to change my field of study in order to better understand the world, but this time through works of art. I worked in museums while pursuing my master's degree in art history before joining the educational programs team at Heritage Montreal.
What does your job involve? What is a typical day like at Heritage Montreal?
My job has changed a lot in three years and every day has a new défis ! My role is multiple and I wear many hats: research, writing, training and coaching of guides and volunteers, logistical management, media interviews for our guided tours, conferences... in the same week, I can be asked to do everything ça !
What inspired you to join Heritage Montreal?
I first became a volunteer guide because I wanted to share my passion for the City and my sensitivity to what surrounds us. I joined the permanent team 3 years later to use my ideas around cultural democracy and the enhancement of heritage dans l 'spirit of improving the quality of life of citizens. The mission ofHéritageMontréal echoes my values.
What is your favourite ArchitecTours tour?
I loved our tour in Mercier presented as part of our residential architecture series Les maisons montréalaises. It was a bold move to walk around the Cadillac metro station, an unusual location for many of the ArchitecTours participants. The tour was a mixed bag and surprenante : we walked the streets developed in the early 20th century around the parish core of Notre-Dame-des-Victoires, crossed Sherbrooke Street to admire the stunning architecture of the Marie-Reine-des-Cœurs Shrine and the former Grace Dart Hospital before exploring a lot of bungalows from the 1950s to 1960s.
What activities or content would you like to create at Heritage Montreal?
I would very much like to develop cultural mediation activities based on citizen participation, collaboration and même la collective creation. It is important to share our expertise but also to listen to the citizens who live in the city. What makes the residents of Montreal's neighbourhoods and the cities of alentours vibrate? How do elementary school children perceive their school and their environnement ? How can neo-Montrealers take ownership of their vie environment? Heritage is a head thing, but it's also a part of cœur ! It is linked to history, but also to real life today. I really like this approach borrowed from the new approaches to cultural mediation in museums.
You and Montreal
What is the building you like the most in your neighbourhood?
I was born in the Little Fatherland and have spent most of my life there. I really liked to walk past the Saint-Ambroise church, which is very special with its bell tower that reminds me of Italy and the golden icon in its tympanum that captivates the eye. The work of architect Ernest Cormier, it is a little jewel for the neighbourhood despite the quilted look of its brick façade. Also, I saw buildings that were familiar to me transforming over time, such as the municipal workshops of Rosemont, parts of which have been integrated into the Marc-Favreau Library by architect Dan Hanganu.
I have been living in Old Longueuil for 2 years. I really like St. Mark's Park which overlooks the venerable buildings on St. Charles Street, St. Mark's Anglican Church and the old city hall and fire station. There is a revitalization project for the church and park under consideration. It will be interesting to follow that closely over the next few years.
If you had to live in another part of Montreal, which one would it be and why?
I would like to live in Pointe-Saint-Charles. The activism of its residents inspires me. And I really like the townhouses on Ash Street.
The cityand elsewhere.
For you, what are the current challenges of the city and how do you see the city of the future or the ideal city?
For the issues, accessibility to housing, the place of pedestrians, access to the River and large parks.
In my ideal city, there would be more room for walkers, less individualism, more parks, more human encounters, fewer cars, more beauty.
What cities do you recommend to visit (outside of Montreal)?
Chicago : I love this Mid-Western American city that I had the chance to visit a few times. Of course, I recommend a walk in the majestic Grand Park, which includes Millennium Park, a green space dedicated to music and culture inaugurated in 2004 and laid out above the railroad tracks. I am also very fond of the Cultural Center whose dome is spectacular and accessible to the public. I also encourage you to get off the beaten track to discover the Pilsen district. It is a residential area that was first inhabited by Czech immigrants at the end of the 19th century. Today, there are many shops run by Chicagoans of Mexican origin and the National Museum of Mexican Art.
Heritage and you
What is your first memory related to architecture or heritage?
I had the chance to travel several times to Europe with my parents. When I was 11 years old, we went on a tour of the Loire Valley castles. I remember being impressed by the vastness of the Château de Chambord, captivated by the elegance of the Château de Chenonceau which spans a river, charmed by the facade of the Château de Cheverny which inspired the Moulinssart de Tintin, amazed by the staging of the French gardens... At that age, I was experimenting with heritage without naming it, emotionally and not at all intellectually. Years later I realized that my love for Art History and architecture was surely born from these travels.
Do you have a film on architecture, history, urban planning or heritage to recommend?
I discovered the program Montréal docs - Les documentaires d'une époque a ired on MaTV which allows me to see a wide range of documentaries about Montreal. The film Dimanche d'Amérique (1961) by Gilles Carle allowed me to see the development of Little Italy and the active community life around the Jean-Talon Market and the Defensa church.
And finally, tell us something about yourself that your HM colleagues don't know ????
I've been playing the cello since grade school. I was lucky enough to attend Le Plateau public school which has a rather exceptional music program and to continue my learning at Vincen-D'Indy. I'm missing time these days, but I take my cello out once in a while for big family celebrations.
