The building was designed by the architect Francisco Javier Sáenz de Oiza, retaining the façade of two older neoclassical houses.

[1][2] It was opened on 4 December 1989, initially to house the collections of Canarian art of the island council, the Cabildo Insular de Gran Canaria.

[3] CAAM has a permanent collection of over 2600 works, many of them from the Americas, Africa and Europe, reflecting the influence of the culture of three continents on the Canarian archipelago.

[4] The museum promotes this theme of "tricontinentality" - the dialogue between the European, African and American continents - as an approach for appreciating Canarian works of art.

[5][6] It has a noted collection of Canarian art, particularly works by artists from the Grupo El Paso [es] and the Informalist movement such as Manolo Millares, Martín Chirino, and Pablo Serrano.