Kunsthaus Glarus provides a platform for the presentation of Swiss and international contemporary art and the collections of Glarner Kunstverein as well as regional artistic production. Since the mid-1990s, Kunsthaus Glarus has made a name for itself within the Swiss museum landscape and on the international art scene with incisive presentations of contemporary art positions and has become, despite its peripheral location, an important hub for contemporary Swiss art. Kunsthaus Glarus focuses in particular on following the creative output of a younger generation of artists who have not yet or have rarely shown in institutional contexts in Switzerland. Swiss artists who are well-known today, including Urs Fischer, Mathis Gasser, Raphael Hefti, Ugo Rondinone, Kilian Rüthemann or Vanessa Safavi, had their first solo exhibitions at Kunsthaus Glarus. The first-time presentations of international positions within the institutional framework in Switzerland have also been possible, including Maja Bajevic, Nina Beier, Bonnie Camplin, Peter Doig, Robert Kinmont or Yorgos Sapountizis.

As the only major art institution in the Canton of Glarus, the Kunsthaus is also responsible for the artistic heritage of the region and is continuously building bridges between contemporary positions and works from the collection of Glarner Kunstverein. In addition, exhibitions based on the Glarner Kunstverein collection are also shown in parallel with presentations of contemporary art. Once a year there is an exhibition focusing on the Glarus art scene. The traditional unjuried annual exhibition alternates with a thematic or juried exhibition that takes place every two years.