The Southland Art Gallery Trust Board has been responsible for pressing for the completion of the art gallery section of the centennial project of 1940. The Board believed that a small city gallery was still necessary in spite of the opening of the gallery at Anderson Park in 1951.

A gallery 50 ft by 40 ft, with adjacent office and storeroom, has been added to the museum building in Queen's Park and was opened in 1961. A small collection of original paintings will be supplemented by a comprehensive selection of high quality reproductions for educational displays.