Alleys are at the heart of Montreal life. A meeting place for the population, they offer havens of peace and intimacy to those who walk along them. You can hear the neighborhood chatter, the occasional basketball, the bickering of cats. Families and friends gather for barbecues, birthdays or simply to soak up the summer sun. They are a place of creation and wonder, where the bright colors of children's chalk drawings harmonize with the radiance of lilac blossoms. They have influenced Quebec's cultural milieu, including theater, literature and the arts, and are part of Montrealers' collective memory.

Alleys, emblematic of Montreal urban planning, were once an essential component of the downtown cityscape, before gradually disappearing from the area in the early 1960s. Initially used as service roads at the rear of housing lots, their usefulness disappeared with the arrival of major boulevards and the imposing skyscrapers that replaced former residential streets.

In an effort to revive the alleyway experience in downtown Montreal, one of the city's busiest districts, the McCord Stewart Museum presents the Museum Alley, a new pedestrianized space on Victoria Street. Created by KANVA, this space plunges the public into the imaginary world of the Montreal alley, inviting passersby to sit and stroll, chat and meet. Surrounded by clotheslines and completely landscaped, the Museum Alley is reminiscent of the city's most beautiful green alleyways, where city-dwellers immerse themselves in nature.

On the ground, between the planter boxes illustrating the subdivision of Montreal lots, a street painting by Olivier Charland as part of the MURAL festival evokes the liveliness of alleyways, capturing the energy and movement of everyday moments through abstract forms.

Museum Alley will host a varied program throughout the summer, in addition to offering games and entertainment. Open year-round, it will evolve with the seasons.