Young athletes and artists from all around the world converge to the Cirque du Soleil headquarters in Montréal for a short period of training before touring with the productions of the company. This project contains 115 studios for them including some that can be combined to become suites. They are complemented by living rooms, balconies, a fitness room, a game room and an internet café. The expression of stacked containers which are crossed over each others reflects the transient nature of the building’s nomadic occupants as well as the tension that exists between the individual and the collective in the company.

By creating two buildings to house visiting artists at Cirque du Soleil, the project breaks down the scale of the program, allowing the two structures to play off of each other and suggest the beginnings of a ‘mini-city’. The straightforward quality of the ‘stacked containers’ concept gives energy and boldness to the overall massing. The organization of the main building around a central atrium not only allows for light but brings a sense of community to the functional circulation areas, allowing them to become public meeting spaces. The attention to difference - changing window patterns, alternating color highlights and the simplicity of materials combined in contrasting ways – all point to the research invested in creating variety from generic elements, making the housing both collective and personal at the same time.
Amale Andraos