The CAAM is back

Anyone strolling down the Calle Los Balcones in historic Vegueta over the past months found the CAAM's doors closed. From this evening that ends: the Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno, an institution of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, reopens its main site at 8.00 p.m. with a ceremony — free entry for all, as long as there is room.

Why the museum had to close

The reason for the roughly ten-month closure was above visitors' heads: the roof. The large, pyramid-shaped metal structures with their central and side skylights had suffered markedly after more than three decades under the salty sea air of the port city. Restoring this roof structure was the heart of the works, into which around €1.04 million flowed in total.

A technical feat: the heavy steel frames had to be brought in with large cranes in the middle of the historic centre — coordinated operations that required a whole team of specialists. In parallel, the goods lift was also renewed, dating from the opening year of 1989; the new one carries up to 2,500 kilograms and will move the artworks safely between stores and halls.

A building with history

The building itself bears a significant signature: it was designed by the renowned Spanish architect Francisco Javier Sáenz de Oíza. The current restoration was in the hands of the Canarian architects Ramón Chesa and Javier Mena, carried out by the firm Proyecon. The works are the culmination of a long modernisation process the venue has pursued since 2016 — nine years in which the Cabildo's cultural institution brought its facilities up to date step by step.

Important for art lovers: the CAAM never disappeared entirely. While the main site was closed, the two other locations — San Antonio Abad and Balcones 9 — stayed open, along with the entire programme and a strengthened online offering.

Two exhibitions for the return

For the reopening, the venue presents two major retrospective exhibitions, both with free entry.

The first, «Pintura Pintura», is a tribute to the Gran Canarian painter Juan José Gil (Gran Canaria, 1947–2023). Gil is regarded as a representative of the «Generación de los Setenta», the generation of artists who renewed the archipelago's contemporary art. His work revolves around landscape, insularity, memory and collective experience — and thus holds a singular place within contemporary Spanish art. The painter died three years ago, leaving behind a body of work that shaped several generations of island artists. The show is curated by Miguel Cereceda; the loans come from, among others, the Fundación Mapfre Canarias, the TEA in Tenerife, the Fundación CajaCanarias and the CAAM's own collection.

The second, «Soñando otra Ítaca» («Dreaming another Ithaca»), is the first major retrospective in Spain devoted to the Cuban artist Sandra Ramos. Born in Havana in 1969 and now living in Miami, Ramos is among the central voices of Cuban and Latin American art of recent decades. With it, the CAAM opens its return with an arc that makes visible the Canaries' connection to the Atlantic and Latin American world — fitting for the venue's name.

Good to know: visiting

The CAAM's main site sits in the Calle Los Balcones in the heart of Vegueta — the historic old-town quarter of Las Palmas, close to the cathedral and the Columbus House (Casa de Colón). Tonight's opening at 8.00 p.m. is open to all, with free entry until capacity is reached. The two retrospectives can then be seen over the coming weeks.

What remains

For Las Palmas, the reopening is more than a renovated roof. The CAAM is among the most important venues for contemporary art in the Canaries and an international point of reference in the heart of historic Vegueta. Anyone with time this evening can experience the return first-hand; otherwise the two retrospectives invite a visit over the coming weeks. A venue that connects the Canaries with the wider Atlantic art world is back.