In our relatively young country, the future of our built heritage seems dangerously threatened by a lack of vision and resources on the part of the powers that be. What will become of these places of great historical, symbolic, architectural and social value if their stories are not transmitted to future generations?

In this sense, The Last Breath, at the Heart of the Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal is a work of memory, offering us a fascinating journey to the heart of one of Montreal's founding sites. Filmmaker Annabel Loyola allows us to reconnect with the uniqueness of the place by focusing on the components of this veritable institution as she would on a living being, capturing the spirit of Hôtel-Dieu throughout its body, bones, heart, vitality, personality and history. She filmed everything that teems within it, with great humanity. As the seasons change, the soul of the place is revealed. Beyond its architecture, it is the values behind the project that transpire from its walls: mutual aid, care, listening, complicity and the encounters that are forged there and that change lives. But also, the importance given to art, contemplation, nature and beauty. Loyola offers us the privilege of witnessing all this at a crucial moment in the institution's history, allowing us to better understand the place and better dream of its future.

Today, six years after its closure, the Hôtel-Dieu is still empty and its function remains uncertain. However, the part of the site that belonged to the Religious Hospitallers of St. Joseph is in transition, serving as a laboratory for future community and artistic projects concerned with preserving the values that have shaped this emblematic site. This gives us hope for the future and reminds us that a final breath is often just the beginning of a rebirth.

 

Jason Burnham
Tënk editorial manager