Franco-Ontarian heritage spans over 400 years. When the CPR transnational railway arrived in Greater Sudbury (Grand Sudbury in French) in 1883, a large number of French speakers from Quebec moved to the area to work in agriculture, mining, and forestry. By 1911, Francophones represented 35 percent of the area’s population, and they remain 25 percent of Sudbury’s residents. The impact of la Francophonie is reflected in the city’s institutions, including the Jesuit Collège du Sacré-Coeur, a French-language educational institute established in 1913 that led to the creation of the University of Sudbury in 1957. Over time, generations of Francophones growing up in Sudbury ever more strongly embraced their uniquely French culture. In the 1970s, while nationalism was surging in Quebec, Grand Sudbury was the epicentre of its own Francophone ‘serene revolution,’ including the “Nouvel-Ontario” movement, a collective of young artists which fought—and succeeded—in forging a distinctive Franco-Ontarian culture and identity.

Those cultural and historical roots are still bearing fruit today, most recently made visible in the lyrical and urbane Place des Arts (PdA), which opened at the end of April. Designed by Moriyama Teshima Architects and Yallowega Bélanger Salach Architecture (now known as Bélanger Salach Architecture) in a joint venture, the long-awaited Place des Arts addresses Elgin Street and brings together seven key Francophone arts institutions in a single stunning facility.