The Rideau Street Convent Chapel was a
Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...
chapel that formed part of the Convent of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart on
Rideau Street in
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...
,
Ontario
Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. Designed by Georges Bouillon in 1887–88, it was dismantled in 1972 and rebuilt inside the
National Gallery of Canada
The National Gallery of Canada (), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's National museums of Canada, national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the List of large ...
in order to preserve its unique architecture.
["Bouillon, Rev. Georges"]
''Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada 1800–1950''.
History
The Convent of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (also known as the Rideau Street Convent) was built in 1869.
[ In 1888, a new wing designed by the architect and priest Georges Bouillon opened that included the Rideau Street Convent Chapel on the second floor.][ The plan of the Gothic Revival chapel was traditional, with a nave and two side aisles lit by ]stained-glass
Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...
windows.[ Its unique feature was a ceiling overspread with decorative fan vaulting supported on slender cast iron columns, creating an effect of spacious elegance. There was also an elaborate carved wood altar screen.][
Although the convent was demolished in 1972, the chapel`s interior was salvaged as the result of a public appeal to preserve its architectural beauty.][ Its careful preservation gives visitors the impression that they are actually entering the chapel as it was before it was demolished. Its stained glass windows are illuminated with artificial lighting, giving the illusion of outside sunlight, as the chapel is located in the interior of the National Gallery without direct access to natural light.]Thomas Tallis
Thomas Tallis (; also Tallys or Talles; 23 November 1585) was an English composer of High Renaissance music. His compositions are primarily vocal, and he occupies a primary place in anthologies of English choral music. Tallis is considered one ...
. Each of the forty speakers set around the chapel plays the sound of a single voice of the forty-part choir
A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...
.Carleton University
Carleton University is an English-language public university, public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to se ...
research centre, Carleton Immersive Media Studio (CIMS) undertook the project of digitizing both the exterior and interior of the chapel. Supported by a Canadian Heritage New Media Research Network Fund grant,architectural drawing
An architectural drawing or architect's drawing is a technical drawing of a building (or building project) that falls within the definition of architecture. Architectural drawings are used by architects and others for a number of purposes: to deve ...
s as well as the chapel's actual built dimensions to ensure accuracy. The 3D modeling software Maya
Maya may refer to:
Ethnic groups
* Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America
** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples
** Mayan languages, the languages of the Maya peoples
* Maya (East Africa), a p ...
was used to construct the interior space of the chapel.[ Since the Convent exterior was not saved, archival photographs of its exterior were used to rebuild the geometry of the building by means of ]photogrammetry
Photogrammetry is the science and technology of obtaining reliable information about physical objects and the environment through the process of recording, measuring and interpreting photographic images and patterns of electromagnetic radiant ima ...
, a method that generates 3D geometry from two or more photographs of the same object taken from different angles.[ In addition, ]laser scanning
Laser scanning is the controlled Deflection (physics), deflection of laser beams, visible or invisible.
Scanned laser beams are used in some 3-D printers, in rapid prototyping, in machines for material processing, in laser engraving machines, i ...
was done on the intricate woodwork of the chapel’s altarpieces and carvings to produce detailed renderings of those elements.[
]
References
External links Friends of the National Gallery fonds
at the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario.{{coord, 45.429434, -75.698386, display=title
Collection of the National Gallery of Canada
1972 disestablishments in Ontario
Roman Catholic chapels in Canada
Roman Catholic churches in Ottawa