Steve Speer, Herald Building, ed. of 15
Building on the Bow, A Retrospective
Christine Klassen Gallery
ARTISTS | STEVE SPEER
DATES | FEB 3-28, 2026
HOURS | TUE-SAT 10 AM-5 PM ♿︎
Building on the Bow, A Retrospective revisits one of Calgary’s most significant urban photography projects through a focused selection of fifteen large-scale works.
Printed as archival carbon images on handmade Japanese Washi paper, the photographs are drawn from Speer’s landmark Building on the Bow publication, developed in collaboration with the Building Owners and Managers Association of Alberta (BOMA) in 2011–12. Together, the works trace Calgary’s commercial core—its architecture, skyline, and evolving relationship with the Bow River—through a lens marked by precision, structure, and restraint.
More than a study of buildings, the exhibition reflects on how a city understands itself through the spaces it constructs. With careful attention to form and composition, the photographs offer a quiet meditation on growth, identity, and the shifting contours of the urban landscape.
A featured festival exhibition, Building on the Bow, A Retrospective will be accompanied by keynote talks, a public artist conversation, and curated walkthroughs designed to engage audiences across both art and design communities.
Christine Klassen Gallery
#200 - 321 50 Avenue SE, Calgary
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
In the spirit of reconciliation, we acknowledge that the Exposure Photography Festival is situated on land adjacent to where the Bow River meets the Elbow River. The traditional Blackfoot name of this place is “Moh’kins’tsis”, which we now call the City of Calgary. This is the traditional Treaty 7 territory of the Blackfoot confederacy: Siksika, Kainai, Piikani as well as the Îyâxe Nakoda and Tsuut’ina nations. It is home to the Métis Nation of Alberta, Region 3 within the historical Northwest Métis homeland. We honour and acknowledge all Nations, who live, work and play in Moh’kins’tsis, help steward this land, and honour and celebrate this territory.