Pouvoir performatif de l'espace ecclésial - L'ambiance de l'église au regard des sensibilités présentes (le cas montréalais)

Josée Laplace (1)

1 ESG - Ecole des Sciences de la Gestion

Church space is highly sensitive. Not only does it appeal to the senses, but strong representations often precede its actual perception. My research on Montreal's churches focuses on today's reception of church space and its power to "perform" at a time in which churches are closing their doors in large numbers. I draw from J. L. Austin's concept of performative utterance (1962) to ask "what and how does space do"? Church space presents itself as an "other space" (heterotopia, Foucault, 1967) that has the capacity to affect mood, to resurrect memories, to raise spiritual awareness. If the sensory aspects which compose the particular ambiance of church space may be similar among churches, each one has its own ambiance. Therefore, how are we to preserve this character beyond cult?

Mots clés: church atmosphere; ambiances; memory; heritage; Montréal (Québec)

Domaines: Architecture, aménagement de l'espace; Sociologie

Josée Laplace. Pouvoir performatif de l'espace ecclésial - L'ambiance de l'église au regard des sensibilités présentes (le cas montréalais). Ambiances in action / Ambiances en acte(s) - International Congress on Ambiances, Montreal 2012, Sep 2012, Montreal, Canada. pp.467-472. ⟨halshs-00745942⟩