Glenbow Museum | 43m | 9s | DIALOG

[trtcttc]

According to Wikipedia, the original was 250k sqft and the new one is 325k sqft.

Because Edmonton gets most of the "Alberta" museums, Calgary could use some more cultural spaces. They have the Royal Alberta Museum and the Art Gallery of Alberta.

 

[badc0ffee]

all to retrofit a fairly forgettable place that wasn't really at the centre of much public discussion for years apart from the occasional school field trip.

Seems needlessly negative.

You can read the key points here. As a visitor you'll finally be able to enter the museum directly from the street, and see both exhibits and collections from all 8 floors (previously it was 5). There will be natural light coming into more of the building (not a ton, as it's a museum), and a rooftop terrace.

I must be in the minority here but I did visit this museum regularly. The strangely obscured access from 8 Ave wasn't doing it any favours, and neither was the disgusting stained carpet throughout the building.

The missing piece is the programming, which I agree is pretty lackluster, and probably won't improve much with this renovation. The last show that really made an impression on me was Nick Cave, which was in 2019! The best public gallery here seems to be the Esker, despite its small size.

 

[Roaring Flames]

It's at the top of the renovation page. https://www.glenbow.org/renovation/

Most of the exterior work seems to be just cladding. The bigger change is happening inside. Never been to the old one, but excited to see it once it opens.

You can see the old Glenbow on Google street view if you're curious. It was very dark, cavernous, and claustrophobic.