In 1940, Raymond Gascon received his horticultural apprenticeship diploma. It was a truly inspiring moment for the graduates and for the school. Although the war delayed graduation ceremonies until 1942, the young men were the first to graduate from the School of Horticultural Learning, newly established at the Montreal Botanical Garden in 1938.
Like his fellow students, Gascon’s keen interest in horticulture and botany had been fuelled by the remarkable energy of avid botanist Brother Marie-Victorin, who founded the Garden in 1931. Despite the challenges posed by a world at war, Marie-Victorin never wavered in his commitment to his pedagogical mission: to create a horticultural school and a Young Gardeners program for the city.
Montreal-born Gascon, who had been schooled at Ecôle des Beaux-Arts, Montréal (1935-36), joined the fledgling program, and after graduation, opted to stay. Until his mid-30s, he worked first as an MBG horticulturalist, then as a garden designer, preparing perspectives and planting plans (1943-49). He prepared planting plans for city parks as well (Percy Walter Park), and in 1949, officially become a member of the City of Montreal Parks’ team.
Gascon worked as an LA technician, under the supervision of city landscape architects. Admired for his sketches and planting designs, he often completed drawings for city LAs (Mont Royal Park Development Plan, 1953, designed by CSLA Fellow M. H. Howitt.) By the mid-1950s, in the very busy decade often termed the “Golden Years” for park development in Montreal, Gascon worked and trained with such LA Fellows as Goshorn, Skapets, and Lafontaine. By 1955, he had become an LA (Grade 1), taking on additional park projects from benches to sports courts and pavements with numerous recreational amenities (croquet, checkers, horseshoes, shuffleboard). By 1960, he’d completed his training, and by 1962, was Team Leader for projects in many iconic Montreal parks.
In the eventful years as the city prepared for Expo 67, Gascon became a founder of the AAPQ, serving as its first Secretary (1965), and later, its President (1971-72). He designed special landscapes for Terre des Hommes Biosphere (1968), and even, the following year, found time to personally complete another shuffleboard design for “Jeux des Galets”, this time with the plans labelled in French!
Images
Photos Courtesy Montreal Botanical Garden:
- Economic Plants Garden, 1937. (Frère Marie-Victorin)
- Marcel Racine, founder of the Youth Gardens, 1938.
- Children’s Activities, 1941.
- MBG working crew, Raymond Gascon second from right in the back line.
- MBG employees, R. Gascon on far right.
Plans Courtesy Ville de Montreal Archives:
1953: Mount Royal Park Development Plan, designed by M.H. Howitt, drawn by R. Gascon
1956: Games and Pavements for Parks: Standard
1960: Planning for the installation of a television tower in Mont Royal Park
1968: Terre des Hommes – Biosphere
1969: Jeux de Galets – Standard
