This year, the Volunteer Executive evolved into the Volunteer Council. We’re excited to introduce our new members:

The Volunteer Council (VC) represents and advocates for every voice in the volunteer community, honouring the volunteer legacy while evolving into the future. We are committed to open communication, transparency, and inclusive decision-making. The VC will support, recognize, and celebrate the contributions of all volunteers through our diverse experiences and shared passion for the AGO.

Here’s a brief bio of each of our members, in their own words (following picture order, above)

Barbara Glaser

While working professionally as a Creative Art Director-Communications Designer I came to volunteer at the gallery ten years ago and started out in the Education Department as 

Co-Chair, and serving on the Volunteer Executive. A fellow volunteer urged me to pay a visit to Prints & Drawings where I viewed a solander box full of Rembrandt works and I was mesmerized! Now, I am thrilled to be volunteering in P&D.

I’m excited to join the new Volunteer Council, a commitment I take seriously. I’m eager to hear what our community of volunteers has to say, and I’m looking forward to what we can accomplish together.

I have many “favourite” works in the gallery, but if I had to choose just one, it would be Augustus John’s portrait of the Marchesa Casati for her fiery energy. I also love the recently exhibited Kathe Kollwitz works, which speak to the soul of the artist and captures the essence of the subject matter. To add to the mix, I enjoy photography, especially works by Diane Arbus and Edward Steichen.

While I’m not at the AGO, I volunteer in other leadership roles, and look after my family; balancing all of that with yoga, meditation, and cooking.  I enjoy any and all cultural pursuits – especially film, literature and music. And I love travel; France and Italy especially!

Maya Kotlarenko (Volunteer President)

I’ve been a volunteer at the AGO for just over 10 years, joining first as an Info Guide during TransformationAGO and then transitioning to Gallery Guide a few years later. What I love most about interacting with guests of the gallery is getting glimpses into who they are, what they love, which pieces they’re drawn to and even what they hate! It’s so subjective and fascinating and everyone’s views are valid one way or another, offering perspectives I may not have considered. 

Similarly, as Volunteer President, I’m excited to hear from volunteers across all of our programs at the AGO about what matters most to them, where they’d like to see changes and improvements, and how we can communicate most effectively among our ever-growing teams. In recent years, I’ve had the opportunity to get more deeply involved in Corporate Social Responsibility, Diversity & Inclusion, Accessibility and Sustainability. My passion is in creating safe, open spaces where people can be their authentic selves and thrive. 

My absolute favourite piece at the AGO is Kent Monkman’s Academy and one of the highlights of my LIFE was bringing Kent into my office last year as a guest speaker to talk about his ‘Shame and Prejudice’ exhibit around the context of Pride and Canada150. I don’t even know if Kent would have been on my radar if it wasn’t through my experience at the AGO and getting the opportunity to tell him in-person how much the volunteers love his work was a truly special moment I will never forget. 

When I’m not at work or volunteering, I’m taking in everything this amazing city has to offer (especially in the summer!) – concerts and live music, outdoor art fairs, marches and parades – you name it!

Sari Snyder

In 2014 I felt that I needed a different focus in my life, so I decided to do some volunteering. I had two choices and I wanted to follow something that would give me some teaching experience and something that would be more culturally inclined. For the teaching I started as a tutor at the public library and for the cultural aspect I began volunteering at the AGO.

I started as an Audio Guide and joined the Information Guide team a little over a year later.

In my life I am passionate about my family my friends and the desire to always provide the best customer service possible in whatever I am doing.  I also love to teach. By nature I am a “people person” and so the AGO was a perfect match for me.

Joining the Volunteer Council seemed to be a natural progression for me to learn more about how the gallery works, and our roles as volunteers within it.

My favourite memory at AGO is volunteering on Family Day, where I found myself working alone for the afternoon shift! Busy as it was, it was a great experience.  

My favourite piece of art is The Burghers of Callas.  I had the privilege of seeing the full burghers of Calais in London several years ago and it took my breath away.  I had the same feeling when I saw them for the first time here at the gallery.

Holly Procktor (Coordinator, Volunteers)

It’s hard to believe I have recently celebrated 11 years at the gallery! I love my work with the volunteers, and my role with the VC is helping to provide administrative support. I tend to be a bit of a cheerleader as well, and really love working in a group.

My favourite artist is Louise Nevelson, known for her monochromatic wooden shadow boxes. I read somewhere that she started working with wood when she was six, scavenging small pieces from her parents’ lumber yard. As a lifelong crafter, that sounds pretty dreamy to me.

Jonathan Love

I’ve been an AGO Information Guide for just under two years, starting during the wonderful del Toro At Home With Monsters exhibition; to this day, I love being able to interact with patrons throughout the gallery, learning their interests, and providing options for how they might best enjoy their visit.

As someone who had no art knowledge prior to joining, becoming an AGO volunteer helped me develop a deep appreciation for art of all kinds. Perhaps the biggest change for me was understanding the progression of modern art, how and why it came to be – and now both the first floor Modern, and the J.S. McLean Centre for Modern and Contemporary Canadian and Indigenous Art, are my favourite collections in the gallery.

The AGO has been an immense boon to my personal growth and I’ve joined the VC in the hope that I can help every volunteer get equally as much out of their experience

Reni Packer

After a career in social work, I graduated from OCAD and practiced as an artist and co-director of a women’s gallery and archive, and retired three years ago. I volunteered at the AGO for many years in Art Rental & Sales, and am currently an Information Guide.  

Joy Bullen

Throughout my years as a student, mother, and corporate person, I found solace and inspiration in art galleries, museums and concert halls.   It was inevitable therefore that as I planned the phase of my life that followed a full-time career in Banking, I looked to the Art Gallery of Ontario as that place where I could not only surround myself with beauty and inspiration, but also make a contribution.  It has been 18 years since I joined the team of volunteers at the AGO as a Volunteer Recruiter, and I continue to value the time I spend interviewing prospective volunteers; participating with like-minded art lovers on projects and discussions; and witnessing the passion, intelligence and wonder of so many young students as they start their own journey of volunteering at the gallery.

I embrace the opportunity for an expanded role working on behalf of gallery volunteers, with the VC, to research, plan and execute initiatives that serve to enhance the volunteer experience while supporting the corporate goals of the AGO.

There are many pieces in the gallery that I love and can get lost in, but always, as I wander through the gallery, I find that place that allows me to exhale and be transported into the beautiful Canadian landscape, among the collection of the Group of Seven. Some years ago, I was moved to gift myself with a limited edition print of A.J. Casson’s White Pine.

Veronica Ha

My journey with the AGO begins nearly 15 years ago in my very first role as a March Break volunteer. Since then, I have volunteered and worked with our youngest visitors in the Education Department and then transitioned to assisting visitors to the AGO as part of the Information Guide Team. I was an Information Guide for a period of time and am currently an Information Guide Lead on Sundays. 

What has kept me energized and excited to volunteer over the years is being a part of a community that wants to promote the enjoyment and experience of art. Each AGO volunteer I have met has their own unique relationship to art and has given me the opportunity for me to learn and expand my horizons. My interest in joining the Volunteer Council is to celebrate this community of volunteers whose commonality is art, and to ensure the community continues to thrive and inspire new volunteers. 

It’s hard to pick only one piece of favourite art in the Gallery. However, the piece that captivates me every time is the very dramatic Massacre of the Innocents by Rubens. I’m looking forward to seeing his early works in the current feature exhibition.

Hanna Schacter

I started volunteering at the AGO in 2013 as an Audio Guide Volunteer for The Great Upheaval: Masterpieces from The Guggenheim Collection, 1910 – 1918. I have also volunteered during the Anthropocene exhibit and as an Information Guide. I am currently the Secretary for the Volunteer Council and have loved getting to work with this group! I have a strong interest in the arts and love getting to share my passion with fellow volunteers and visitors to the gallery. My absolute favourite exhibit at the AGO has been Mickalene Thomas: Femmes Noires. When I’m not at the gallery I am busy studying at U of T as I am in my first year of the Master of Museum Studies program. I am excited about getting to apply all that I have learned as a volunteer to my studies!

Contacting the Council:

Please reach out to Maya Kotlarenko, President, at either [email protected] or [email protected]   You’ll hear more from us, soon!

NOTE: the Volunteer Council was asked to extend their term during the pandemic, with members serving until July 2023. We thank this Council for their dedication and flexiblity during a challenging time!