A leading design light of Montreal, Gilles Arpin has raised the profile of the city's landmark buildings

摘要

Montreal lighting designer Gilles Arpin made a transfer from the world of theater to illuminating the buildings he loves in his native city. For more than two decades he worked as a head electrician, lighting director and designer, and production manager for opera, ballet, and musical performances, from Broadway-style shows to rock and roll extravaganzas. On world tours, he grew passionate about the cities to which he traveled, getting a crash course in design along the way by studying with leading lighting designers and scenographers: masters such as Nicholas Cernovitch in New York, Roberto Oswald in Argentina, Joseph Svoboda in Prague, and Michel Beaulieu in Montreal. Arpin's travels sparked a passion for canvasing the architectural particularity of each city he visited, leading him to study urbanism for two years. Now, after spending most of the 1990s experimenting with lighting equipment and championing the results to be had by upgrading civic exterior illumination, he finds himself in a leading role, changing the face of Montreal's nighttime look. He's also made friends among the city's civic administrators, who now seek his advice, and expertise to enliven the darkened facades of buildings in their charge.