Works of art hidden away in storage are now on display for the first time at the Pierre Lassonde Pavilion in the Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec.
The new pavilion that doubles its exhibition space opened to the public on June 24.
“It's a way for us to show more of what we couldn't show before,” said Annie Gauthier, director of collections and research.
Even with its three existing pavilions, this Quebec City museum has a contemporary art collection that's so large, there simply wasn't enough room to show it all off until the new addition.
A panelled piece by Jean-Paul Riopelle, for example, takes up three full walls.
“It's really a game-changer for the Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec. It's a way to reposition the collection and to promote artists from Quebec,” said Gauthier.
Get a peek at the new pavilion and some of the artwork inside in the video above.
A lot of art work remains in storage, but Gauthier says this is a start.
The collection ranges from decorative arts and design, to Inuit art, to contemporary pieces, but one of the biggest attractions is the space itself.
The pavilion is a glass building flooded with natural light, featuring an indoor spiral staircase as well as a suspended staircase seen from outside the building, connecting the second and third floors.
Part of the money for the $103 million expansion came from private donors; the rest was split between the provincial and federal governments. Both Premier Philippe Couillard and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attended the official inauguration last week.
The brand-new pavilion was a popular attraction over the Fete Nationale long weekend, when the museum opened its doors to visitors for free.
“We had more than 31,000 visitors in just one weekend so we were ecstatic, so happy,” said Gauthier.
