The apparent simplicity of Montreal-based Étienne Lemay’s projects belies a long and circuitous professional trajectory. After training in graphic and interior design, he spent many years moving between Canada and work experiences abroad, in countries including France, Australia, and Kenya. When he appeared unannounced at Balkrishna (B.V.) Doshi’s office in Ahmedabad, India, he was invited to join a research project on materials and housing in informal settlements. While working with Marchese Partners in Australia, Lemay applied to study architecture at Dalhousie University. This led to many years working for Brian MacKay-Lyons—they still collaborate today.
Whereas in Doshi’s office, Lemay made the drawings because he couldn’t communicate with locals, in MacKay-Lyons’s office, he was handed a full project in Gatineau after only a year, because he was the only francophone. As a result, he quickly obtained his license.
Lemay’s early years of work focused on commercial interiors, but he became concerned with how much waste these projects produced—perhaps seeding his later interest in building sustainably. As he turned from interiors to architecture, Lemay gravitated toward residential projects— he likes the close client relationships and working at “a scale where you do everything.” Now a sole practitioner with one occasional employee, he revels in multitasking and isn’t looking to grow his office.
Architecture écologique’s projects are both “rough and refined,” says Lemay. This is the product of years of working in the Maritimes, as well as additional stints on the West Coast at Patkau Architects and in Quebec City at Atelier Pierre Thibault. A lineage of regionalist approaches to design comes across in how Lemay works with heritage buildings, and with the culture of built heritage.
In Quebec, construction culture differs from region to region. Lemay is continually both learning from and educating builders on sustainable techniques. For instance, he asks builders to leave screws in if they’ve put them in the wrong place, to avoid creating air gaps in the building envelope.
Beyond Lemay’s focus on sustainable architecture—he’s had Passive House accreditation since 2015—he values engagement with construction culture, since most of his projects are non-urban and embedded within natural landscapes. He will never raze a site and designs in ways that enable crews to tread lightly during the building process.
This profile is part of our October 2024 feature story, Twenty + Change: New Perspectives.
As appeared in the October 2024 issue of Canadian Architect magazine
As appeared in the October 2024 issue of Canadian Architect magazine
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