March Exhibitions
March yourself over to a gallery for one of these exhibitions
Step into a world of creativity and imagination this March in Calgary! Our roundup of art exhibitions showcases some of the city’s finest artists and offers a unique opportunity to experience their work.
Pivot
Runs until April 1, 2023
Framed on Fifth (1207 5th Ave. NW)
Free to explore
Melanie Morstad exhibits a new body of work that pivots, seeking inspiration through a renewed lens that links nature with the figure. The exhibition’s run also features a reception and painting demo.
framedonfifth.com
Wonderspaces
March 1 – 31, 2023
TELUS Spark Science Centre (220 St. George’s Dr. NE)
Prices vary
Telus Spark’s Wonderspaces is an awe-inspiring and thought-provoking meld of art and science, drawing the guest in and distorting reality — giving new light and perspective on the mundane.
sparkscience.ca
Encoded Forms
March 2 – 31, 2023
Sparrow Artspace (36 4th St. NE)
Free to explore
Joël Prevost is a sculptor of the human form while Darcy Johnson is an abstract artist interested in the human mind. For this exhibition, they present drawings and sculptures that respond to each other’s artwork.
sparrowartspace.com
The Desert Turned to Glass
March 2 – May 7, 2023
Contemporary Calgary (701 11th St. SW)
With admission
Contemporary Calgary presents Charles Stankievech’s The Desert Turned to Glass, a transmedia installation that inhabits both the projection room of the planetarium’s dome and the subterranean space below.
contemporarycalgary.com
AUArts Gallery Crawl
March 10, 2023, 5:30 – 10pm
Alberta University of the Arts (1407 14th Ave. NW)
Free to explore
AUArts Gallery Crawl is a chance for students to showcase their work to the internal AUArts community and the Calgary community at large. Head over to check out their work!
auarts.ca
Retrospect
March 14 – 17, 2023
cSPACE Eau Claire Neighbourhood Hub (381 2nd Ave. SW)
Free to explore
Photographer Sean Dennie takes you behind the mask through imaginative and revealing artist portraits captured during the 20-year history of the Festival of Animated Objects from 2002-2019.
puppetfestival.ca
Active Mythologies
March 14 – 17, 2023
cSPACE King Edward (1721 29th Ave. SW)
Free to explore
Active Mythologies: Masks and Personal Narratives looks to celebrate the active capabilities of mask artworks and their abilities to tell a story in relation to the artist’s traditional roots and personal mythologies.
puppetfestival.ca
End of Winter Artisan Market
March 18, 2023, 11am – 4pm
Bowness Community Association (7904 43rd Ave. NW)
Free to explore
Join Tangled Tree Markets for their spring market! Find artisan goods like hand-dyed clothes, pottery, jewelry, knits, crochet and fibre arts plus vintage furniture, home decor and much more.
tangledtreemarkets.ca
Jean McEwen
March 18 – April 12, 2023
Wallace Galleries (500 5th Ave. SW)
Free to explore
Celebrating the centennial of his birth, Jean McEwen is a renowned Canadian Quebecois artist know for his ground-breaking work during the action expression movement of the ’50s-’60s and beyond.
wallacegalleries.com
Snap Shots: Pages from the Past
March 18 – April 12, 2023
Wallace Galleries (500 5th Ave. SW)
Free to explore
Wallace Galleries presents works on paper by Ted Godwin, Kenneth Lochhead and Harold Town. Snap back in time with some historic modern works of artists from the Regina Five and Painters Eleven
wallacegalleries.com
It Looks Nice from a Distance
March 25 – May 6, 2023
TRUCK Contemporary Art (2009 10th Ave. SW)
Free to explore
Taking the form of a 12-channel video installation incorporating text, sound, video and sculpture, Anahita Norouzi’s multi-media installation explores the themes of otherness and displacement.
truck.ca
Last Chance + Ongoing Exhibitions
The Beyond Within
Until March 11, 2023
Illingworth Kerr Gallery, Alberta University of the Arts (1407 14th Ave. NW)
Free to explore
Toronto-based artist Annie MacDonell explores feminist conceptions of everyday as a basis for political engagement. A series of video installations and photographic works, this exhibition proposes personal and political reorientation strategies.
auarts.ca
Forward Together
Until March 17, 2023
The Bows (2001b 10th Ave. SW)
Free to explore
Forward Together is a group exhibition curated by Stephanie One Spot, Letecia Ochoa, Kayla Gale & AJ Kluck that showcases Indigenous artists and their expression of sovereignty and self-determination, contemplating the question: How do we as Indigenous peoples decide and imagine and create our future?
thebows.org
One By One
Until March 26, 2023
Leighton Art Centre (282027 144th St. West, Millarville)
By donation
Ceramic artist Juliana Rempel explores the bold lines and colour of the prairies, allowing objects to emerge from the shadows, posed and poised. The exhibition’s feature installation illustrates how our environment can be deconstructed into pieces accumulated over time.
leightoncentre.org
The Place I Am
Until March 26, 2023
Leighton Art Centre (282027 144th St. West, Millarville)
By donation
The Place I Am explores nature’s healing capabilities as a coping mechanism. Over the past couple of years, the members of the Clematis Collective have found solace and connection in nature. They have found that nature allows space for humans to process experiences and find connections.
leightoncentre.org
In Full Bloom
Until March 30, 2023
ATB Branch for Arts + Culture (102 8th Ave. SW)
Free to explore
In Full Bloom is a celebration of artwork by and about women. This exhibition, curated by Miriam Fabijan, features the artworks of 14 amazing women from Calgary. The exhibition reception will be held on Wednesday, March 8 — International Women’s Day.
drive.google.com
David Garneau: Métissage
Until April 22, 2023
Nickle Galleries, University of Calgary (2500 University Dr. NW)
Free to explore
Edmonton-born artist David Garneau documents his Métis heritage and his struggle to shape a contemporary Indigenous identity. With imagination, wit and some ambivalence, this exhibition of more than 50 artworks celebrates historical and contemporary Métis lived experiences.
nickle.ucalgary.ca
The Birth of Portraiture
Until April 22, 2023
Nickle Galleries, University of Calgary (2500 University Dr. NW)
Free to explore
This exhibition explores the life of Alexander the Great and his successors through their portraits on ancient coins. Tiny masterpieces of Hellenistic art, these coins record likenesses and suggest the distinct personalities of their subjects.
nickle.ucalgary.ca
After Holbein – Turkish Carpets and the Tudors
Until April 22, 2023
Nickle Galleries, University of Calgary (2500 University Dr. NW)
Free to explore
Hans Holbein the Younger, a 16th-century artist, famously painted portraits of Henry VIII and other nobles and frequently included richly patterned Turkish carpets. Curator Michele Hardy offers a selection of these carpets and explores how they signalled power and wealth.
nickle.ucalgary.ca
Astral Dance
Until April 9, 2023
Contemporary Calgary (701 11th St. SW)
With admission
Astral Dance is the first solo exhibition of works by Chitra Ganesh in Canada, and a significant survey of her practice. Ganesh delivers fantastic, dreamlike worlds where the past, present and future are merged into new, speculative propositions.
contemporarycalgary.com
A Time for Stories
Until April 14, 2023
Inglewood Bird Sanctuary (425 9th Ave. SE)
Free to explore
As part of a rotating exhibition of artworks that feature connections to the land, this exhibition features 2D, 3D and sound artworks by Shirley Hill, Amy Hill and Sonny-Ray Day Rider.
calgary.ca
Human Capital
Until April 16, 2023
Contemporary Calgary (701 11th St. SW)
With admission
Human Capital presents work that offers insight into the impact of Canada’s immigration policies and history: how it treats humans as capital, and the role it plays in shaping the complex and contested formation of a Canadian identity.
contemporarycalgary.com
Retainers of Anarchy
Until April 16, 2023
Glenbow at The Edison (2nd Floor, 150 9th Ave. SW)
Free to explore, tickets required
Experience the mesmerizing 25-metre hand-drawn animation from artist Howie Tsui. The exhibition showcases Tsui’s talent at bringing together martial arts characters and techniques with social and political realities of present-day Hong Kong.
glenbow.org
The Visitors
Until April 30, 2023
Esker Foundation (4th Floor, 1011 9th Ave. SE)
Free to explore
Ragnar Kjartansson creates performances exploring the intertwining of pathos, humour and collective emotion. The Visitors is a large installation consisting of nine audio and video channels documenting a single-take musical performance.
eskerfoundation.com
Interiors
Until April 30, 2023
Esker Foundation (4th Floor, 1011 9th Ave. SE)
Free to explore
Margaux Williamson is a painter who also writes and makes videos. Within her multifaceted practice, Williamson’s painting has evolved through long rhythms; her bodies of work have been produced over the years.
eskerfoundation.com
We Were Here: Stories from Early Chinatown
Until April 30, 2023
Gasoline Alley Museum, Heritage Park (1900 Heritage Dr. SW)
$4.95 – 9.95
Bring your family and learn about Chinese history on the prairies through art and imagination, discover fictional stories written by members of the Chinese community and explore two iterations of Chinatown in Calgary.
heritagepark.ca
11,104 Days: From Artists to Zenith
Ongoing
Newzones Gallery of Contemporary Art (730 11th Ave. SW)
Free to explore
In honour of its 30th anniversary, 11,104 Days: From Artists to Zenith displays each of Newzones’ represented artists, including spectacular new work created by gallery artists in celebration of this milestone.
newzones.com
Music & Wellness
Ongoing
Studio Bell, home of the National Music Centre (850 4th St. SE)
With admission
Check out National Music Centre’s new permanent Music & Wellness exhibition, which taps into the power of music on mental and physical health through a series of powerful video interviews that create an immersive sense of personal conversation.
studiobell.ca
Have a visual arts event that’s not listed? Email us at events@calgaryartsdevelopment.com or fill out this form.