Beyond Eden: Cultivating Spectacle in the Montreal Botanical Garden Ana Armstrong A Thesis in The Department of Art History Presented in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Magisteriate in Arts at Concordia University Montreal, Quebec, Canada August 1997 O Ann Armstrong, 1997 National Library Bibliothèque nationale 1 of Canada du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographie Services services bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington ONawaON KlAON4 Ottawa ON K1A ON4 Canada Canada Your hle Votre retersnce Our file Narre reterence The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant à la National Library of Canada to Bibliothèque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sel1 reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microform, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfiche/film, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. The author retains ownership of the L'auteur conserve la propriété du copyright in ths thesis. Neither the droit d'auteur qui protège cette thèse. thesis nor substantial extracts fiom it Ni la thèse ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. Abstract Beyond Eden: Cultivating Spectacle in the Montreal Botanical Garden AM Armstrong The Montreal Botanical Garden, a 180-acre complex comprised of over thmy outdoor and ten indoor landscapes located in the city's east-end, is the product of a Depression-era government funded Public Works project. Its founding director, preeminent botanist Frère Marie-Victonn, drew fiom and expanded upon four hundred years of western botanical studies and garden planning to realize the Garden. In this thesis, the factors which inspired hirn, particularly his perceived need of such an institution to fulfill the purposes of popular botanical education for the masses through attracting and instructing local and foreign visiton, and the provision of a place where people could commune with nature, are explored. In recent years, the function of the Garden as a tourist mecca has surpassed Marie- Victonn's original aims. The construction involved in creating "natural" and "cultural" spectacles is investigated in order to comprehend the extent to which this widely acclaimed and advertised sightkite reflects its ideological and physical locus within the city's urban fabric and history. iii Acknowledgements The writing of a thesis is Sisyphean: there is always a new article or book being dtten, necessary to read a theory to evoke and explore and thoughts to be put on paper only to be discarded. Yet as Camus asserts in his version of the myth, "one must imagine Sisyphus happy." 1 am happy herein to th& those who have made this task less difficult and the endeavour worthwhile. 1 have had the enormous privilege of studying at a university where the faculty hold a broad rage of interests and who teach what must now be considered the 'hot so new" art history. In my graduate course work 1 studied under Dr. Joan Acland who graciously agreed to supervise my thesis and to her 1 owe a great debt for critical comments and encouragement. Dr. Jean Bélisle deserves much of the credit for inspiring archiva1 research and Dr. Catherine Mackenzie found time in her hectic schedule to provide feedback as a reader. To both of them 1 also owe my thanks. One cannot write entirely in a vacuum and I was fortunate to receive attentive ears and help fiom valued colleagues and fiiends. Thanks mut be given to Rhonda Meier for her constant encouragement and her insight. James Vilona went beyond the cal1 of duty by reading this text in its draft form. His input and comrnents were instnimental in realizing the final product. My family desewes numerous awards for their patience and support, both emotional and financial. It would not have been possible to complete the work without the haven provideci by the Bak farnily. This thesis was largely supported by a loan from the François Bak foundation. To Adam -- for bringing me back into the garden and teachhg me bow io grow. Fatigué des vains bruits que font les hommes, je me tourne vers l'arbre. Je me pénètre de l'essence de sa forme, et je suis sensible à la vie qu'il projette sur moi. k le vois vivre et agir, lui que l'on dit immobile. Je lui parle, lui que l'on dit sourt, et j'entends sa réponse, lui que l'on dit muet. Marie-Victo~,extract hmL'arbre, 1943 Imperialist, keep off the trees 1 said. No use: you waik backwards, admiring your own footsteps. Table of Contents ... List of Iiiustrations .................................................................................................... vil1 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 1 Chapter One Redesigning Paradise .......................................................................................... 5 Penhallow's Proposals ...................................................................................... 15 Marie-Victorin Victorious ................................................................................. 19 Teuscher's 'Master 'plan ................................................................................... 33 Chapter Two Tourisrn .............................................................................................................41 Culture ............................................................................................................... 52 Celesti al Greenhouse ....................................................................................... 56 The Japanese Garden ......................................................................................... 58 The Chinese Garden ..........................................................................................61 Dlflerence .......................................................................................................... 68 Authenticity ....................................................................................................... 72 The "Other" ....................................................................................................... 75 How Should a Botanical Garden Grow? .......................................................... 80 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 86 Endnotes ...................................................................................................................... 88 Illustrations ................................................................................................................. 105 Bibüograph y ............................................................................................................... 126 vii List of Illustrations The majority of images have been culled fkom the Mediathèque at the Montreal Botanical Garden or £kom post cards, tourist "marken" from on- and off-site sources, in order to illustrate how the Garden represents itself to the public in its promotional literature. The Plan of the Garden at Padua, 1591. Taken fiom John Prest, The Garden of Eden: The Botanic Garden and the Re-creation of Paradise. (New Haven: Yale UP,1981) 44. Detail of the third quarter at Padua. In Prest, 2. The Garden at Leiden, 1601. In Prest, 45. The Garden at Leiden, 1720. In Prest, 53. Main pavilion of the Montreal Botanical Garden. Photo by Pierre Petreault. Taken fiorn Pierre Couture, Marie-Victorin Le botaniste patriote. (Montréal: XYZ éditeur, 1996) 2 11. View of the main pavilion fiom the display gardens. Post card Ca. 1940. Detail of H~MHébert's terra cotta panels on main pavilion. Taken fkom Guy Pinard Montréal: Son histoire; son arcbitechire. T5 (Montréal: Les éditions la Presse, Ltée, 1992) 85. Teuscher's 1936 plan of the Montreal Botanical Garden. In Frère Marie-Victorin's The Montreof Botanical Garden. (Montreal: The Montreal Botanical Garden (?), 1942) 12-13. Marie-Victorin and Teuscher. Taken fiom André Bouchard's "Marie-Victorin et le Jardin botanique." Quatre-Temps Cjan. - aw. 1982) 20. Aerial view of the Botanical Garden complex. Taken fiom Pinard, 79. Display gardens. Post card. Photo by Michel Gagné. Entrance gardens. Post card. Photo by Michel Gagné. The Celestial garden. Post card. Photo by D. Chapman. The Garden of the Master of the Fishing Nets, Suchou. Photo taken fiom Tours Chanteclerc Travei brochure. No photo credit. a.. Vll 1 Japanese garden. Post card. Photo by Michel Gagné. Japanese garden. Post card. Photo by P. Mastrovito. Zen garden. Mediathèque. No credit. (n.c.) Zen garden. Mediathèque. nec. The exhibition hall in the Japanese pavilion. Mediatheque. n.c. Ikebana in the tea room. Mediathèque. n.c. Noh theatre performance. Mediathèque. n.c. Zen archery . Mediathèque. n.c. Tea ceremony. Mediathèque. n-c. Tea ceremony . Mediatheque. n.c. Japanese animaton. Mediathèque. n.c. Tsukubai ablutions fountain. Mediathèque. n.c. Japanese garden. Mediathèque. n.c. Japanese garden with Chinese garden in background. Mediathèque. n.c. Lantem festival. Mediathèque. nec. Lantem festival. Mediathèque. nec. Lantem festival. Mediathèque. nec. Ice sculptor from Harbin. Mediatheque. n.c. Ice sculpture in the Garda. Mediathèque. n.c. Musicians and dancers. Mediatheque. n.c. Dancers. Mediatheque. n.c. Musicians. Mediathèque.