The proposed arts development space at the old Scouts building on Memorial Drive is about to become a National accessArts Centre (NaAC) campus for artists living with disabilities.

The NaAC announced on March 11 that it would be building a purpose-built accessible performance and workshop space for the performance arts, made possible with $8.2 million in funding from the Government of Canada’s Green and Inclusive Community Buildings Program.

Tearing up at the announcement, NaAC’s CEO JS Ryu called it an unprecedented investment into the disability arts, and into NaAC on the eve of the organization’s 50th anniversary on March 11.

“When completed, this new multidisciplinary arts facility will feature a prominent performing arts learning Studio where dancers and musicians with disabilities can further hone their skills in a truly accessible learning environment built for them,” he said.

The building’s design was done by Dialog, which also designed the upcoming Scotia Place Calgary Event Centre, and the Calgary Central Library.

Elements of that latter design can be found in the design for the new performance space, with a sweeping wood panelled entrance that is reminiscent of the Central Library’s.

Ryu said that after seven years of non-stop hurdles since the roof of the Fairview Arena collapsed, there was now some light coming out of the end of the tunnel for NaAC and artists using the centre.

“Just imagine the faces of our artists when they realize what kind of home we’re going to be building for them, just gives me goosebumps. This is a huge development for our organization and for Calgary,” he said.

“The fact that world-class design is now supporting a new creative home for the NaAC, it’s going to be a game changer. I think that will have lasting impacts for generations.”

Among those, he said, was creating a purpose-built space that was first and foremost designed for artists living with disabilities that would be theirs, instead of having to be invited into other spaces.

“The number of conversations I’ve had around people say, Well, why wouldn’t you want to just go to some vacant space somewhere downtown, or, a vacant community hall in the whatever corner of the city, we are beginning to prove them wrong,” Ryu said.

“We are beginning to actually tell the community, actually we can and we will build a space that’s purpose built for the disability community. It’s going to be not only just for the disability community, it’s going to be designed in a way that brings the outside community in.”

MP George Chahal, who made the announcement on behalf of the Government of Canada, said that there was a need to build forward thinking infrastructure that met the needs of Canadians living with disabilities.

He said that the NaAC had an important partnership with the Government of Canada, including showcasing Canadian culture internationally.

“We had an opportunity in Ottawa with the South Korean Ambassador to host NaAC, and that shows the partnership through art and this organization, connecting us to other countries around the world,” Chahal said.

“This is about making sure that Canada is strong, that we invest in critical infrastructure and support all Canadians at this difficult time. More than ever, we need to be unified as a country, as Canadians, to stand up for Canada. So Canada is and remains strong and independent, and that we protect our values and our culture.”

Campus construction to begin in the summer of 2025

Ground is expected to be broken on the project in the summer, with 80 per cent of the project’s funding already raised.

Gerald Chipeur, member of the NaAC’s Capital Campaign Committee, said that talks were already underway with orders of government and the private sector to fundraise for the remaining amount.

“I can tell you that there are a number of organizations and groups who want to do more than just support the arts. They want to also make a statement about inclusivity and about the importance to be a place where artists can be everything that they want to be, and that’s very different than some of the other arts organizations that are out there,” Chipeur said.

“In fact, we’re unique, probably in Canada, maybe even in North America, in terms of our focus on disability arts.”

The announcement also came with news about an impasse between the City of Calgary and the NaAC over the future of the Scouts building.

Ryu said that the Office of Mayor Jyoti Gondek had begun to have conversations with City of Calgary administration, and that has begun to move the project forward.

“I think right now, one of our bigger concerns is around the impact of the tariff trade war on the construction crisis of these two projects. So time is of the essence. And I think all of our partners, including the Government of Canada making this announcement today, we’re all committed to getting it done, getting it built, and getting it done on budget and on time,” he said.

Celebrating 50 years of supporting artists living with disabilities

The National accessArts Centre began as the Indefinite Arts Society in 1975, and over the last five decades, has grown to become a major, if somewhat understated, player in representing Canada on the international arts scene.

“Having been founded in 1975 and to be able to draw from that knowledge and to have that experience, to have that legacy behind us, I think, sets us apart from any other disability arts organization, really, quite frankly, in the world,” said Ryu.

The centre has had artists represent Canada at the United Nations climate change conferences in 2021 and 2023, at the 2021 Dubai Expo, and in the past seven years has 24 international projects across three continents and 12 regions of the globe.

Through that lasting partnership with Global Affairs Canada, art created by NaAC artists has been showcased in Canadian embassies and high commissions.

That reflected a change in the centre’s purpose and mission, which began eight years ago as a way to flip the script on how artists were viewed at the NaAC.

Ryu said previously the centre operated as a social service agency for disabled Calgarians looking to be involved in the arts—but the flip was to say the organization’s purpose was as an arts organization, that happened to work with artists who have disabilities.

“In that process, we have now positioned our artists to be front and centre in the creative economy, where we are connecting them to paid opportunities in the arts, to showcase their work, to exhibit their works,” he said.

“Our dance ensemble has two major productions that are now touring globally, whether it’s the music compositions coming out of our artists community that continue to secure royalty fees through various different platforms.”

He said that the NaAC has connected artists to more than $1.25 million in artist fees, commissions, and royalties.

“It’s both exciting to know that we are among a very few handful of organizations in the country doing this, but at the same time, it’s extremely frustrating, right? If we had more partners across the country, more agencies, more organizations carrying that flag with us, I think we’d be making a lot more progress, especially on the arts and culture side of things.”

Ryu said part of that opportunity was to shake up what has, in his mind, become a stale and outdated representation of Canada on the global stage.

“Global Affairs Canada actually acquired 13 of our artists’ works to be part of its permanent visual arts collection, and they’ve been a willing partner in most of our international projects. Because, anecdotally, what has been shared with me is we can’t do the same old anymore,” he said.

“We used to always send ballets, orchestras, and we would always highlight the Group of Seven paintings. You know what? That’s getting really stale, really fast. As we know, audience members, young viewers of art, consumers of art, are really drawn to more than just the aesthetic appeal of what they’re seeing.”

He said that with NaAC artists, international viewers of Canadian artists have been getting more than the usual: they get to see a different side of Canadian art and a different understanding of what it means to be creating art in Canada.

“They want to understand and get an appreciation for diverse voices when they know that the work that they’re seeing hung up in a gallery in Tokyo has taken one artist with a disability eight years to make painstaking efforts,” Ryu said.

“That they can feel that passion for art through that exhibition, through that display, therein lies even more layers to how and how and why the arts matter.”

Ryu said the level of success achieved by some of the artists that are involved in NaAC hasn’t precluded the other side of the centre’s objectives, which is to act as a training centre for artists.

“We’re essentially a training institution for artists with disabilities to have a home to create some of those works go on to great acclaim and hang up in some of the most beautiful galleries, or they’re showcased in some of the most amazing performing arts festivals, but I would say 70 to 80 per cent of the product ends up either getting thrown out and reset, and that’s OK, too,” he said.

“That’s part of the artistic process that had been lost from the disability community for decades before NaAC upped its game.”

Ryu said giving the opportunity to be creative to members of the disabled community is actually re-empowering a large segment of the Canadian population.

“This latest statistics that just came out, almost one in four Canadians identifying as having a disability. The simple fact of the matter is, as our country ages, there is not a lot of younger people to fill the gap,” he said.

“Disabilities will be much more part of the norm than any of us would expect, and to be able to embrace that now, I think is, is actually future proofing the arts and culture sector for the longer term.”