It’s not a demo-lution but a revolution.

After only two years, Agnes Etherington’s famous graffiti mural, Transformations, is set to be demolished to build Agnes Reimagined. The Demo-lution Party held by the Agnes is set to take place on Aug. 17.

The mural, commissioned in 2022, was made possible through the works of Oriah Scott, EronOne, HONE, HUNGR, AJ Little, Emily May Rose and guest graffiti artists from across the Montreal-Toronto corridor. Symbolizing the changes occurring within the contemporary art scene, the mural broadens Agnes’ cultural impact outside of strictly institutional art.

For Director and Curator of the Agnes, Emelie Chhangur, Transformations directly reflected the changes occurring inside the Agnes. When she arrived, there were significant transformations, including expanding the curatorial team and increasing the amount of BIPOC staff to 80 per cent. These structural and transformative changes within the gallery were not easily visible from the outside.

“Transformations was the most outrageous and most visual of the signalling that things are changing here—this place has changed,” Chhangur said in an interview with The Journal.

Transformations helped to outwardly manifest creativity on campus and showcase graffiti as a respectable art form. Graffiti artists are often kept outside the sanction of high art and the mural helped to destigmatize this often alienated form of art.

“We’re the only museum in the world that can say we have Rembrandt’s on the inside and graffiti on the outside, without hierarchy,” Chhangur said.

As Agnes Reimagined is underway, Chhangur would love to work with the artists again, this time creating something indoors to challenge the misconception that comes along with graffiti art.

Inside the new Agnes is a very large welcome centre, including an art wall measuring 100 by 50 feet, Chhangur said.

“We went from doing it on the outside to now bringing this kind of cultural production inside,” she said.

She explained while it’s one thing to have this kind of art on the outside, it’s incredibly significant to integrate it into the fabric of the Agnes. Having a community and representation outside is one aspect, but when they become integrated from within, it demonstrates that  Agnes is here for them.

Transformations proved itself to be the colour and healing power of many nurses and patients from Kingston General Hospital. The mural can be seen from the critical care unit and the hospital rooms—this changes people’s lives in a way which may not be evident from an outside perspective, Chhangur said. While hospital rooms may lack colour or life, Transformations made up for it.

Chhangur believes art unites people from diverse backgrounds and great disagreements. Moreso, it creates and gives space for individuals to agree together, proving the power of art in itself.

“[The] arts understand cultural traditions, they understand semiotics, they understand visual culture, they understand how to message. Together, we can enact transformational change from the scientific to the social,” Chhangur said.

While it comes with a heavy heart to be saying goodbye to Transformations, it’s exciting to see what the future holds for the Agnes.

Agnes intends to commemorate and celebrate Transformations with a Demo-lution Party—demolition meets revolution—on Aug. 17. All artists who created the mural are returning, and 300 bricks from the mural will be given away to members of the Agnes.

This will not mark the end of the Agnes’ relationship with graffiti art. “I think the next level [for the mural] is the invitation to come inside,” Chhangur said.