The VCR includes the Faculty of Fine Arts Slide Collection, which is one of the largest in Canada with over 350,000 catalogued 35mm slides and data bands of over 18,000 high-resolution digital images, and the Moving Image collection, which consists of over 41,000 titles dating back to 1895 in all types of formats as well as the Canadian Women Artists History Initiative. The VCR stores, catalogues and displays all these different collections while simultaneously serving as a discovery space and a platform for informal gatherings.

The collection of art is at the heart of the renovation project concept. It becomes a series of inhabited walls that allow users to consult and discover this significant repertoire. The thousands of slides, cassettes and discs are displayed and stored in a large wooden wall that spreads across the space. This focal point, whose laser engraving is inspired by the different digital formats used throughout history, reminds the users of the wealth of knowledge available in the media bank. The large wood panels create a uniform treatment for the storage of diverse documents and act as a separator between the different programme elements while ensuring acoustic and visual insulation. Indeed, some rooms are bright; and others are plunged into darkness for projection purposes.

The collective workspace adjacent to the collection provides an opportunity to consult, either individually or collectively, to foster an educational dialogue within Concordia University’s Faculty of Fine Arts.