Remai Modern

Remai Modern is a public art museum in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. The $80.2-million, 11,582-square-metre museum, plus $19.5-million underground parkade, is located at River Landing, on the west bank of the South Saskatchewan River. The opening date is set as October 21, 2017. The project is supported by the City of Saskatoon, the Government of Saskatchewan, and the Government of Canada. The design, by Canadian architectural firm KPMB (Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects) and Smith Carter Architects and Engineers, won the 2011 Canadian Architect Award of Excellence.HistoryIn 2011, lead patron Ellen Remai donated $15 million toward construction costs, $15 million to support international exhibition programs and also donated the most comprehensive collection of Picasso linocuts, valued at $20 million, to the gallery’s permanent collection. Remai Modern follows the closure of the Mendel Art Gallery, and will house its collection of over 7,700 artworks. The Mendel Art Gallery, founded in 1964, closed in June 2015. One of the galleries in the new building, as well as an annual international lecture series, will be named in honour of the Mendel Art Gallery and its founder Frederick (Fred) Salomon Mendel and family.The inaugural director and CEO of the museum, Gregory Burke, was appointed in 2013. On September 17, 2014, philanthropist and European printmaking specialist Frederick Mulder announced, on behalf of U.K.-based Frederick Mulder Foundation, the gift of a collection of 23 Picasso ceramics to Remai Modern.