Dalí museum opening in Old Montreal next May with 26,000 square feet across five floors

A museum dedicated to Salvador Dalí will open in Old Montreal in May 2027, anchoring what organizers hope will become a multidisciplinary space bridging the surrealist master and Quebec creators.

Félix Bélanger and Lorraine Pintal are converting the Édifice des Commissaires on rue de la Commune—a 26,000 square-foot building across five floors with a dome—into the museum. Bélanger acquired the building for $15 million. The space will display graphic works, sculptures, personal archives, and select paintings from the estate of the former owner, businessman Daniel Langlois, who died in 2023.

The largest art source will be Frank Hunter, an American described as the world's greatest Dalí archivist. Bélanger, a historian by training, originated the Divina Dalí exhibition shown in Montreal and Toronto in 2021 and 2023. When Langlois died, members of his family contacted Bélanger, convinced his project respected the businessman's original vision. "The philosophy of Daniel was always to bring together business people and the world of artists. That's exactly what we're going to do," Pintal said.

Pintal, former director of the Théâtre du Nouveau Monde, has positioned the museum as a creative incubator rather than a gallery. "We will create a multidisciplinary space where performers, researchers and digital specialists will marry with art. We want to propose dialogues between Dalí and Quebec creators from multiple disciplines," she said, citing examples like Les 7 doigts, the Automatistes, Michel Lemieux, François Girard, Robert Lepage, and Xavier Dolan. "Dalí becomes a pretext for creation," Bélanger added. "Let's not forget he wanted his work to live. I won't hesitate to say the best place for that is Quebec."

The museum is seeking acquisitions and will approach Investissement Québec for funding. Funding is coming almost entirely from the private sector, though the organizers plan to access programs from SODEC, the Ministry of Culture, and the Ministry of Tourism within approximately two years. Patricia Saputo, a major patron, is providing financial support for renovations. Bélanger credited two women: Pauline Marois, "who opened several doors for me," and Saputo. A large announcement about the project is scheduled for October 27.