A new public art gallery called "art house" has opened in downtown Calgary, occupying a temporary exhibition space previously used by the Glenbow Museum in the Edison office building. The gallery is a collaboration between Aspen Properties and the Alberta Arts Foundation (AFA), featuring the foundation's extensive collection of 9,600 artworks by over 1,700 Alberta artists. It opened on September 10 and is currently open Tuesday to Friday from 12 to 4 pm. The space was originally created as a museum-grade gallery during the Glenbow's renovation, and after the Glenbow vacated to prepare for its reopening as the JR Shaw Centre for Arts & Culture in late 2026, the Alberta Foundation for the Arts stepped in to keep the gallery active.
This collaboration matters because it demonstrates how private sector and government partnerships can revitalize downtown areas by bringing cultural activity to vacant commercial spaces. The gallery continues the momentum of Calgary's post-pandemic downtown recovery, providing free public access to a significant collection of Alberta art. However, its limited weekday hours (no weekends or evenings) may reduce its potential to attract visitors and bring vitality to the downtown core. The project highlights the strength of Calgary's arts network and the importance of adaptive reuse of office space for cultural purposes.