NEW BUILDING
When art meets architecture, powerful experiences take shape.
The transformed AGO has been designed by Frank Gehry, the Toronto-born architect who exploded architectural traditions on the international scene.
Highlights of the Gehry design include:
- A new entrance aligned with Walker Court, the historic heart of the AGO, and The Grange, the Gallery’s first home
- A glass and wood façade that spans 600 feet along Dundas Street and rises 70 feet above street level
- A sculpture gallery that extends 450 feet, enabling visitors to see out onto Dundas Street, and passers by to see into the Gallery
- A new social gathering place that will offer direct access from the street, and will operate at independent hours from the Gallery. This space will include a two-level gift and book shop, a fine dining restaurant, a casual café, the Jackman Hall lecture theatre, the members’ lounge and a free contemporary art space for new projects by emerging artists
- A new, tinted titanium-and-glass four-storey south wing overlooking Grange Park that will house a centre for contemporary art and offer one of the most beautiful event spaces in the city
- A south façade that complements the new Ontario College of Art and Design building to the southeast, with both buildings framing Grange Park
- Extensive glazing on both the north and south façades to allow visitors to experience the surrounding cityscape from the Gallery interior
- A sculptural staircase that soars from the second floor, linking Walker Court to the new centre for contemporary art and new event space
- The integration of natural light throughout the building, including a new glass roof over Walker Court and a light-filled walkway around its upper perimeter, bringing light into the core of the building
