Profile: Lina Belmahi

Lina Belmahi has recently joined Héritage Montréal as coordinator of ArchitecTours 2021. She will be assisting the Programs and Activities team throughout the summer in organizing our guided tours. A planning student with a passion for architecture, history and heritage, she's a natural fit for our team! Find out more about her below.

1. What is your first memory related to architecture or heritage?  

My first memory related to architecture and heritage goes back to my 16th birthday. As part of my high school diploma (French baccalaureate), I had to work on a project combining economic and social sciences and history-geography. A bit by chance, I decided to take an interest in the urban heritage of Rabat. It was a revelation for me. I was amazed by the different civilisations that have left their mark on the city and to finally know the history behind these buildings. A few months after submitting the documentary file with a short film, I decided to become a heritage guide for the city of Rabat in Morocco, for the "Rabat, garden city" tour. This experience gave me a new approach and appreciation for the work of the craftsman and strengthened my spirit of collaboration. It also gave me the opportunity to meet professors of architecture and architects specialised in built heritage. Meeting professionals in the field helped me understand the importance of preserving and enhancing built heritage and, above all, passing it on. This is where the great adventure of heritage began for me and where it became the guideline of my personal and professional ambitions.

2. What is your background? 

I have a bachelor's degree in interior design from the Université de Montréal and I am currently doing a master's degree in planning, option conservation of built heritage, also at the Université de Montréal. My professional goal is to combine interior design and heritage. I would like to specialize in heritage interiors. In my opinion, they are too often put aside, whereas we learn more about the users and traditions of the past from the interior than from the facades.

3. What inspired you to join Heritage Montreal?  

What inspired me to join Héritage Montréal in the first place was its reputation and its ability to help Montreal's heritage evolve. I've always admired Héritage Montréal 's efforts to preserve Montreal's built heritage, such as its calls for innovative ideas to conserve endangered heritage sites like the Craig Pumping Station.

Also, as part of my Master's degree in conservation of built heritage, I have to do a lot of research on buildings, their heritage values, their histories... and I have to say that the Memento platform has saved my life on several occasions! I also like the fact thatHéritage Montréal has an educational mission when it comes to built heritage. One of the most important factors in keeping heritage alive is passing it on. This means educating and raising awareness among citizens, so that a society continues to feel close to its heritage. It's important to nurture a sense of social cohesion. Through Memento (which gets citizens to contribute), the many guided tours, the 5 à 7s and so on, Héritage Montréal fulfils this mission perfectly, and I'm honoured to be part of it.

4. How do you see the city of the future? The ideal city?  

The ideal city for me is an equitable city, which takes into account the needs of all people. It is a city that has values and that takes into account its built and immaterial heritage in the development of viable solutions to make the city an inclusive, universally accessible space. The ideal city reflects its evolution, with a built heritage that demonstrates the diversity of its population and the eras that have passed through it. The city of the future is a city that integrates in its development sustainable notions on an environmental, social and economic scale and what could be more in line with sustainable development than the built heritage!

5. What are your top 3 cities to visit (outside of Montreal)? Do you have any particular recommendations?  

My top 3 cities to visit would be Barcelona, Brussels and Rabat. 

1. Barcelona: I had the chance to live in Barcelona for 4 months as an exchange student during my Bachelor's degree in Interior Design. It is a city that for me is perfect. There is something for everyone! Whether it's sunbathing or admiring the vernacular gothic, Romanesque or contemporary architecture... Barcelona is a real open-air museum that has inspired great artists such as Picasso, Dali, Miro or the great Antonio Gaudi, a renowned architect, notably known for the Sagrada Familia. All this in a very festive atmosphere thanks to the many clubs (by the sea!), bars and the concept of the "plaza " which says a lot about the Spanish way of life. The plaza is a square with little or no facilities where people meet at night, on the ground, and enjoy the gentle summer breeze with a beer and tapas. In short, this is a city where the word culture is expressed in the broadest sense of the word, 24 hours a day. 

2. Brussels: You can blame it for its gloomy days, but Brussels is full of surprises. Between culinary delights, museums and good humour, it is above all the city of great cultural icons such as Amélie Nothomb, Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt, Stromae, Hergé... Not forgetting the inescapable surrealist painter: René Magritte. This avant-garde painter has greatly influenced my way of seeing, thinking about the world and conceptualising interior design. Moreover, the problematic that I chose for my end-of-study project in interior design was the following: How to allow a visually impaired user to regain his autonomy through surrealism? I was inspired by the notion of "seeing with the eye of the soul" in order to encourage the creative process in a residential design project, through multi-sensorial stimulation. Thanks to my trip to Brussels, I won the 2nd prize in innovation awarded by my peers, the RED (student design network) of the University of Montreal. I didn't stay long with our friends in Brussels but I would definitely go back because Brussels is an inspiring city.

3. Rabat: Rabat... where to start? It is my home town and I am proud of it! I am attached to its built and intangible heritage with its traditions, its language and its gastronomy. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2012, it is also the capital of Morocco. Rabat is a quiet city and ideal for walking. Between the medina (old town), the beaches, the Bouregreg river marina, the forests, gardens and parks, there is plenty to choose from. Like all coastal cities, it is a city that has been marked by many civilisations (Roman, Phoenician, Merinid, Almohad, Almoravid, Andalusian...), that was under French protectorate, and even sheltered for a very short period, a German colony. The passage of all these civilizations has marked the architecture of the city. Some buildings show the bigeneration work of civilizations as with the Chellah (Roman and Merinid) for example. Ancient Roman city, Sala Colonia (Chellah) is the cradle of Rabat. The city then became the necropolis of the Merinid dynasty and today, the site is a semi-public garden where one can see the remains of ancient civilisations. It is also occasionally rented out for events including the Jazz Festival. If you are fond of heritage, gastronomy and long walks, Rabat is the city for you!

Perhaps you will meet Lina during our ArchitecTours visits this summer! Discover other portraits by clicking here.