The Olympic Park asks: What do you build from a fallen roof?

Fifty years after Montreal lit the Olympic flame, the legacy of 1976 is getting a second life—this time in rust, fibre, and concrete dust.

The Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ) and the Olympic Park have launched an open call for two new public artworks, to be unveiled in 2026 as part of the Games’ 50th anniversary. The twist is that artists must construct their pieces using at least 60% material from the dismantled roof of the Olympic Stadium.

It’s a poetic constraint that asks how can something inspiring be made from something that never quite worked: The stadium roof has been a symbol of Montreal’s overreach and underdelivery for decades—leaking, collapsing, then eventually coming down altogether. And yet here we are, being asked to turn that broken promise into something meaningful.

The selected works will anchor the new Parcours Écoart, a permanent sculpture walk weaving through Espace Vert Viau and the Morgan trail in Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve. It’s a nod to sustainability as well as civic reuse—of space, of story, of material.

“Art is a powerful tool for reconnecting citizens with their environment,” said CALQ president Véronique Fontaine in the call for submissions (translated to English).

Art, in this case, becomes a medium for collective reimagining—what could this place be, beyond its concrete past?

There’s serious backing behind the call: $200,000 per selected artwork, plus $4,000 for finalists to develop a maquette. Artists need at least five years of experience in visual or applied arts and a portfolio that includes public art.

But beyond credentials, what the call really asks is: Can you find beauty in debris? Can you speak to history without being trapped by it?

Unlike the flashy Quartier des Spectacles or the heritage-glazed Plateau, this installation will live in the East End—a part of Montreal that rarely sees this kind of cultural investment. Turning the Olympic grounds into a daily public gallery is a bold move toward decentralizing the city’s art map. For once, it’s not about drawing tourists but about giving locals something permanent, and maybe even personal.

Submissions are open until September 30, 2025, and the final works will be revealed in September 2026. That gives artists just over a year to wrestle with metal, memory, and meaning. No pressure.

More info and application details are available via CALQ.