350th Anniversary Installation at Maison LePailleur : No Sooner Installed than Ransacked

The team at the Maison LePailleur in Châteauguay got a rude awakening on Monday morning, the day after a weekend packed with festivities to mark the Seigniory of Châteauguay’s 350th anniversary. The Jardin des Bâtisseurs monument was vandalized less than 24 hours after its inauguration on Sunday. The work is broken and the damage is estimated at over $2,000.

Translation Amanda Bennett

The historical museum had been working on this project for nearly a year, with the aim of “creating a collective legacy to highlight the contribution of all our ancestors and all the people who built the Châteauguay we know today,” explained Maison LePailleur Director, Karine Landerman. A wooden beam nearly 40 feet long, which had been lying around for years in the basement of the Maison, was been converted into a large public bench on the museum grounds.

Behind the bench, local artist Stéphane Poirier has drawn five life-size figures illustrating the skills of the period. The drawings of the midwife, blacksmith, herbalist, bricklayer and carpenter were reproduced on aluminum foil. However, the mason’s and carpenter’s panels were completely smashed and the other three were also damaged by the vandals.

“This is the second time the installations have been attacked. This time, it’s really shaken up our team, who have put so much effort into offering this to the public,” lamented Ms. Landerman. “We wanted to create a nice tribute to the past. There was nothing controversial about this work. It’s as though people just have no respect for the past,” commented artist Stéphane Poirier.

Saddened that his work was destroyed so quickly, he consoles himself with the knowledge that the original drawings are still digitized and can be reprinted.

Maison LePailleur invested more than $30,000 to create the monument, the total cost of which is estimated at more than $50,000. The City of Châteauguay also made a financial contribution. The cost of the figures was $5,000.

Two Installations Vandalized in 2 Months

The first installation to be vandalized was the Boîte aux lettres alvéolaires by artist Tali Lévesque, installed on the museum grounds in 2020. It was completely destroyed in August.

The figures will be removed from the installation while the site is made more secure, Landerman explained. “The city had already planned to improve the project by adding lighting. Surveillance cameras will also be installed,” stated the Maison LePailleur’s director.

Complaints have been lodged with the Châteauguay police regarding both acts of vandalism.