Stunning five-level expansion of Toronto's AGO to open in 2027

The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) has revealed that its sweeping new five-storey expansion will open to the public in September 2027, nearly five years after the massive addition was first announced.

The ambitious project, led by Diamond Schmitt, Selldorf Architects and Two Row Architects, broke ground in 2024 and will add 40,000 sq. ft. of space to the gallery when it opens next year.

The new space is named the Dani Reiss Modern and Contemporary Gallery, for the eponymous chairman and CEO of Canada Goose, Order of Canada member and art collector, who spearheaded the expansion with a whopping $35 million donation.

The AGO says that the expansion is slated to house nearly 400 works from a selection of Indigenous, Canadian and international artists across five floors.

Overlooking Grange Park, the Deni Reiss Gallery takes inspiration from AGO's 2008 Frank Gehry-designed expansion, with sweeping 5000 sq. ft. gallery spaces that boast soaring 23-ft. ceilings.

Designed with consultation from Indigenous leaders and communities, the expansion has been created to operate without the burning of fossil fuels, earning it a CAGBC Zero Carbon Building Design certification — the first cultural institution of its size in Canada to earn the distinction.

Once open, the Dani Reiss Modern and Contemporary Gallery will increase the AGO's art display real estate by 30 per cent. This marks the gallery's seventh expansion since it opened in 1900.

The Dani Reiss Modern and Contemporary Gallery at the AGO opens Sept. 25, 2027.