The Art Gallery of Mississauga is committed to the development of a Permanent Collection with a focus that is unique to the Gallery and begins to focus on creating a destination collection for the future AGM. The aim is to reflect the cultural diversity of the community, with a particular interest in work by Canadian artists that examines the inter-relationship between one’s own heritage and the ongoing definition of one’s culture from a contemporary perspective. The AGM is designated as a Category A Institution under the Cultural Property Export and Import Act of the Government of Canada.

As of 2014, the Gallery seeks to build a collection that participates in a significant national or international dialogue on photography and its conceptual and material possibilities. Of particular interest are works of art that reflect the excellence and diversity found in the community of Mississauga, iconic and historic Canadian works of art and digital or lens based | photographic artworks. An additional interest will be work by artists that examines and interprets the urban environment, identity and experimental noteworthy works representing a period of time, movements and concepts in Canadian Art history.

The AGM collection aims to present projects and exhibitions and acquiring works that embrace a wide range of contemporary aesthetics and technologies with the goal to offer students, educators, research specialists, and general audiences an intimate and comprehensive visual study centre on digital and lens based images and photography. It is understood that as artists continue to experiment with new technology that is representative of its time – new forms and visual experiences will arise and challenge modes of accepted production. The AGM collection must absorb the new from an informed stand point, while simultaneously connect to historic precedents.

Lens based works and photographic works are any given method of producing an image whether historical print and film or digital and new media methods of production. Not limited to conceptual works, performance based documentation, photojournalism, landscape and other emergent styles. Photography processes for collection are Albumen, autochrome, c-type print, calotype, carbon print, collage and montage, cyanotype, digital print, dye destruction print, poloroid, gelatin silver print among others. Digital based works are not limited to film, video, sound audio works, 2-D and 3-D digital visual experiences, projected images as an example. The work must have the proper digital platform to ensure proper care and maintenance and longevity by the AGM.

Finally, the Gallery is interested in accepting donated work which support the following definitions; Iconic works by Canadian artists that have major museum attribution or are represented in the permanent collections of the National Gallery of Canada, the McMichael Canadian Art Collection or the Art Gallery of Ontario.