The Art Gallery of Hamilton (AGH) is taking steps to expand its physical space and incorporate affordable housing for artists.

Announcing the planned renovation at the King Street W., building Tuesday, CEO Shelley Falconer called the project a “first-of–its-kind in Canada” and “made-in-Hamilton solution.”

The goal, Falconer said, is to expand the 88,000-square-foot gallery so it fills the space between King and Main streets using land currently owned by the city. The result would be a gallery that is 20 per cent larger, fitting more programming and lots more art. At any given time, Falconer said, only two to four per cent of the AGH’s collection is ever on display.

If the renovation goes as planned, she said, guests will “see the collection when they walk in the door,” and not have to go upstairs first like they do now. 

“Every Tom Thomson we own will be hanging on the wall,” Falconer said, referring to the Group of Seven painter.

AGH oldest and largest art museum in region

Speaking alongside Hamilton Mayor Andrea Horwath and area MPs, Falconer thanked the federal government for $950,000 in funding to support the project. She said the funding will support the first of several phases to complete the project. The expected total price tag wasn’t shared Tuesday.

Over the next two years, she said, the AGH will issue a request for qualifications to find an architectural firm to create designs. 

She didn’t share an exact timeline for the project, but said typically, projects like this take five to 10 years. 

Hamilton Mountain Liberal MP Lisa Hepfner, who chairs the federal standing committee on Canadian heritage, said Hamilton is a “hub for the arts.”

“We have the fashion, we have the poets, we have the artists,” Hepfner said, adding the 112-year-old AGH is the oldest and largest art museum in southwestern Ontario. 

Horwath described the AGH as “one of our city’s most important cultural institutions,” where “our city’s stories are shared with the world and where the world’s stories are shared with us.”

In addition to displaying more art, Falconer said, the renovation will allow the gallery to have more studios for artists, kid-friendly spaces, educational programming, and an area dedicated to local art history.

The gallery will work with City Housing Hamilton to work affordable housing into the design, she said. That housing will be slated for artists and creative workers, she added, a trait that makes this project unique in the country.

The AGH will fundraise for the renovation, Falconer said, noting plans to expand the gallery’s wedding venue and make the retail store more accessible to increase revenue. 

She said the AGH — which received increased funding from the city last year — has a balanced budget.