chaudière islands
Multimedia, virtual panorama tour, Canada 2010/2011
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The tour starts on top of the CRTC building on the Gatineau side of the Ottawa River and allows the exploration of the Chaudiere Islands, a small group of islands adjacent to Parliament Hill, through a network of virtual 3D panorama spaces. The name Chaudiere (cauldron or kettle) comes from the falls next by that used to fall down freely into a kettle-shaped basin and have been controlled by a ring-shaped dam since the early 20th century. The water power of the falls once turned the islands into an industrial centre: First being used to run saw and paper mills, it has then been transformed into electric power and is running the turbines of three energy companies to the present day.
The Chaudiere Islands
The islands and the channel system between them are shaped by timber, paper and energy industries that have governed the place since the early 19th century. Time and the complexity of the built environment − including industrial ruins, antiquated but functional and high-tech facilities for paper production and electricity generation, and a network of over and underground, open and barricaded waterways, falls and dams − have blurred the borderlines between natural and human-made structures and created an ambivalent architectural ecology.
In contradiction to the archipelago's prominent location, its long and vibrant history, and its significance for the capital's energy supply today, most people appear to be widely unaware of this place.
images: screenshots from the panorama tour
Directions:
Move across the islands along individual paths by mouse-clicking the semi-transparent orange and green hotspots (orange refers to a location in winter, green to one in summer time) and explore each location by left-clicking and moving the mouse. Click on the historic and video hotspots to see historic imagery or videos of the location, respectively. Close the virtual tour window to exit the tour and return to this website.
To view the flash files of the tour you might have to install a specific plugin for your browser (free download e.g. here for PC or here for Mac). With slower internet connections, the loading of new panoramas may cause some delay after clicking onto the respective spot.
The photo, video and sound footage for the tour was collected during an Artist Residency at the Centre DAIMON, Gatineau/Ottawa, Canada in early 2010 and in the summer of 2011.
Historical imagery with courtesy of Library and Archives of Canada, National Capital Commission, and Energy Ottawa.
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