What Might Exist Here? : A New Downtown Public Art Installation
Tuesday November 10, 2026
We are thrilled to partner with ASTRA Group to transform the construction hoarding surrounding Calgary’s former Hudson’s Bay building into a large-scale temporary public art installation, bringing four original artworks into one of downtown’s most recognizable locations.
Stretching more than 283 feet along 1 Street SW, the installation features original digital artworks by artists Leechuts, WAPOSHPYII, Jarett Sitter and Katherin Leivikov. Each artist was curated to create an independent work across an approximately 70 foot wide canvas, with the four artworks coming together as one expansive outdoor exhibition in the heart of the city. Centred around the creative prompt WHAT MIGHT EXIST HERE?, the project invited each artist to consider what it means for a city to be in transition, exploring the space between what was, what is, and what might come next. Through their individual visual languages and creative practices, the artists offer distinct interpretations of change, memory, movement, myth and possibility.
The artworks have been digitally produced and printed onto vinyl, transforming the construction hoarding into a temporary public canvas. Experienced by pedestrians, commuters, downtown workers and visitors, the installation brings contemporary art into the everyday life of the city, making ambitious, large-scale artistic work accessible outside the walls of a traditional gallery.
For us at BUMP we see the public realm as a place to have conversations with Calgary, and wanted to explore a question that would invite these artists to play with ideas of transformation and possibility. Public art can question, provoke and offer new ways of seeing the places we inhabit. In moments of change, it creates space for artists to imagine what might come next and contribute their own perspectives to the future of our city.
ART IN A CITY IN TRANSITION
The former Hudson’s Bay building, located at 200 8 Avenue SW, has been a fixture of downtown Calgary since 1913. Originally opened as a major commercial department store, the six-storey building has occupied an important place in the city’s architectural and cultural history. Following the closure of Hudson’s Bay in 2025, the familiar landmark enters a new chapter. While the hoarding serves an important role in protecting the property and ensuring public safety, it also creates a temporary boundary between the site and the surrounding public realm. Rather than treating this space as simply a functional barrier, BUMP and Astra saw an opportunity to transform it into something meaningful for the city in the meantime.
The project reflects a shared belief that development is about more than transforming physical properties. It is also about how people experience neighbourhoods, public spaces and the city around them as that transformation takes place.
MAKING SPACE FOR ARTISTS TO SHAPE THE CITY
For BUMP, this collaboration represents an opportunity to expand the role of public art in Calgary beyond traditional murals and seasonal festivals. By working with a private development partner, BUMP is exploring new ways to create paid opportunities for artists, bring contemporary artistic practices into the public realm and integrate creative perspectives into the spaces where the city is being built and reimagined.
The four commissioned artists were given the freedom to interpret the creative prompt through their own practices, rather than illustrate a predetermined vision for the building.
At an architectural scale rarely available outside of major public installations, the project provides artists with an opportunity to experiment with the possibilities of digital artwork across an expansive urban canvas, while reaching audiences who may not otherwise encounter contemporary art in conventional gallery settings.
WHAT MIGHT EXIST HERE? is an invitation to look at a familiar place differently, to sit with the uncertainty of change and to imagine the possibilities that exist between what a city has been and what it could become.
The installation demonstrates how temporary spaces associated with construction and redevelopment can become meaningful cultural spaces in their own right, creating opportunities for artists to participate in shaping the identity and future of the city.
Visit these artists pages to learn more about their design.