How did you come to volunteer at the AGO? After retiring from teaching I took a year off to recharge. However, I began to miss talking about art and thought about the AGO. While I didn’t miss teaching students, I did miss the opportunity to converse about art and volunteering as a Gallery Guide at the AGO seemed perfect.

What was your most memorable experience? The most interesting and unusual experience occurred 2 years ago when Rubens’ The Massacre of the Innocents was installed at the AGO with The Elevation of the Cross hanging across from it on the opposite wall. I was studying the latter painting for tour preparation when I noticed a man and a woman standing in front of the Massacre deep in discussion. I turned to them and asked whether I could help them with any questions they might have. The woman let me know that, not only were they both Rubens’ scholars, but that the man was in fact David Jaffe, who had first identified the painting as being an autographed Rubens. He had also written the pamphlet that was distributed to the Gallery Guides as an introduction to the work. I was quite embarrassed by my presumption but ended up having a lovely chat with them. David Jaffe even answered a question that had stumped me about the Elevation of the Cross. How often does an expert appear just at the moment when you have a question to ask? It was perfect.

What did you do before you became an AGO volunteer? I taught art in the Toronto school system at the secondary level. I loved teaching art and felt privileged to have the opportunity to open up students’ minds to the history of art as well as the creative problem solving aspects of studio work.

You have also been involved in other volunteer activities at the AGO? Yes. I was on the Volunteer Executive, now the Volunteer Council, from 2016 to 2019. Also, after the rehang rollout of the permanent collection began in 2015, I became interested in the contribution of the Women’s Committee to the AGO. Many of the most outstanding artworks in the collection appeared to have been either gifted by the Women’s Committee or purchased with their assistance. That started me on a research project which resulted in an initial series of 7 articles published on the Volunteer Blog in 2018, under the title “Connections and Collections “. A second installment is planned to follow as soon as I’m able to continue my archival research.

Thank you Susan for your continued dedication to the AGO and our visitors