The McMichael Canadian Art Collection will continue a series of 10 touring exhibitions to venues across the country.McMichael Art Gallery
The McMichael Canadian Art Collection in Vaughan will close on Sunday, July 26, until 2029 as the gallery undertakes its most substantial renovation since 1983.
The estimated $150-million overhaul will see the development of additional exhibition, programming and studio space, an indoor theatre, and bring the facility up to net-zero-carbon operating standards. Toronto-based Hariri Pontarini Architects will handle the revitalization’s design.
The McMichael occupies 40 hectares on the Humber River in the village of Kleinburg – just north of Toronto.
The gallery is working to formalize its role in Vaughan’s arts and cultural landscape. In June, 2023, the City of Vaughan, the McMichael and the Vaughan International Film Festival (VFF) signed a memorandum of understanding to advance the city’s arts, culture and creative industries. At the time, the city hoped the partnership would help attract creative talent, provide training, and offer educational, event and exhibition opportunities across the city.
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Central to the MOU was the work of the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, which Raphael Costa, City of Vaughan director of economic development, calls a “fantastic anchor” to Vaughan’s arts and culture landscape. The institution brought more than 136,000 visitors to the city during the 2024/2025 year.
“It’s not just a slogan; they’re home to the art of Canada,” Costa says.
Costa acknowledges that the McMichael has a different target market than some of Vaughan’s other attractions, such as Canada’s Wonderland or the Vaughan Mills outlet mall. He says the city is trying to “fill the gap” with other initiatives for residents and tourists who would otherwise visit the gallery to browse its exhibitions or public gardens. Those initiatives include a city-sponsored public art program, and the VFF and Italian Contemporary Film Festival, which are typically held in June and July. Costa says the city was aware of the gallery’s renovation plans and the resulting closure when they initially signed the MOU.
Meanwhile, the approximately 75 small businesses in Kleinburg Village often rely on the gallery’s visitors, who are more likely to stop at local restaurants, coffee shops or retail stores before or after visiting the gallery. “A closure of the McMichael would likely have some impact on visitor traffic, particularly for businesses that benefit most directly from people coming into the village for a day trip or cultural outing,” says Kleinburg Business Improvement Area president Susan Slipacoff, who also owns and operates Kleinburg Integrative Health.
“The hope is always that visitors coming for one destination will spend time exploring the broader community as well,” says Slipacoff. “All businesses benefit indirectly when there is more overall awareness of Kleinburg and increased foot traffic in the village.”
Still, Slipacoff says most businesses are not bracing for a “dramatic impact” in tourism decline, though she acknowledges that those relying on casual foot traffic rather than repeat customers may be more affected. She is hopeful the McMichael’s temporary programming efforts within the community will help bridge the gap before the gallery’s renovations are complete.
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From the McMichael’s standpoint, the renovations are long overdue. Originally the private home of collectors Robert and Signe McMichael, the property – and the couple’s corresponding 194 artworks - was donated to the Province of Ontario in 1965. Today the McMichael houses nearly 8,000 artworks by Tom Thomson, the Group of Seven and their contemporaries, Indigenous artists, and artists from many diasporic communities across country. The gallery is the only major museum to feature exclusively Canadian art. But the original timber-and-stone building with its low roofline is in dire need of more space to showcase its growing art collection and host additional public programming.
The upcoming expansion is being funded in part by $50-million from the Government of Ontario and $25-million from the Government of Canada’s Green and Inclusive Community Buildings program.
In the absence of an operational building, the gallery will continue a series of 10 touring exhibitions to venues across the country. These include multimedia artist Rajni Perera’s exhibition Futures, which will make stops in Toronto and Kamloops, B.C., and Rita Leistner‘s photography series The Tree Planters, which will be featured at galleries in Kelowna, B.C., Red Deer, Alta., and Whitehorse. According to gallery leadership, a series of offsite exhibitions is under development elsewhere in York Region in Ontario, although details have yet to be released.
“The McMichael has always extended well beyond the gallery’s walls,” says Grace Johnstone, director of communications, marketing and sales.
For Slipacoff of the BIA, the potential associated with a larger, more connected McMichael Canadian Art Collection is worth the interim growing pains.
“We are also focused on the long-term benefit of having a world-class museum in Kleinburg, and the attention, cultural tourism and regional visibility that will bring once the renovation is complete.”