” I started talking photographs when I was a student at the Ontario College of Art in 1974. I have continued to take photographs focused on the changing landscape and urban settings.

This selection of 18″ x 16″ digital prints are of Toronto’s neighbourhoods, ravines, and the city’s waterfront on Lake Ontario. There are also photographs of the natural world and rural scenes.

My photographs are being show at Evergreen Brickworks located in the Don River Valley Brick Works at 550 Bayview Avenue, Toronto. M4W 3X8. For more information, reach out to Marthe Yolleck [email protected] “

Are you a volunteer with something to share – an exhibition, showing or sale? Feel free to reach out to Holly to be featured on the AGO volunteer blog. You can also bring in a flyer / advertising material and feel free to post on the volunteer bulletin board in the volunteer lounge.

Hello volunteers! Sharing here, these wonderful pics of the April Volunteer Annual Gathering – our first (but not the last!) time together in over 3 years! Our AGO Events Photographer Paul Ayers has made these downloadable images:

AGO Volunteer Party Pics April 27 2023 by Paul Ayers (adobe.com)

We’ve shared these images as a way to relive the event through view, but if you want to save an image for your own files and print, please follow these instructions:

• Simply click on the image you want to download
• Look for the three dots that look like this: (…) in the top right corner of the page
• Click on those three dots to download
• The image will open in your computer in paint or another application
• Save to your computer or print

If you want a specific photo printed and have trouble downloading, reach out to Holly who will gladly make you a colour copy in the office.

We hope you enjoy these memories of a wonderful evening together,

– Holly (volunteer resources)

Hello everyone,

Last Saturday, when the AGO – and many cultural institutions across Toronto- offered free attendance in celebration of the King’s coronation, more than 13,000 people visited the Gallery. That’s a lot more than recent Saturday attendance, which is typically around 2,600. In other words, it was a very full house! In addition, 545 visitors became Paid Annual Passholders. A big thank you to all of the front-of-house, PSD, facilities, curatorial and programming staff who welcomed our public and engaged in activities throughout the day. During peak times the line stretched all the way to OCAD U. Here is a quick video showing the lineup.  

We also had a full house in Baillie Court on Wednesday afternoon where I facilitated a panel discussion on the topic of the Dani Reiss Modern & Contemporary Gallery. The panel included our lead donor Dani along with the architect team Annabelle Selldorf, Don Schmitt and Brian Porter. It is clear that the architects are working together very well and are all tremendously excited about how the building is shaping. Dani is incredibly grateful to be involved in the project – and that is a vote of confidence in all of you and the work you’re doing. Thank you especially to the Development team for arranging the special lunch for Dani (who brought his mother, an artist) and the panel discussion. There will be a similar public talk later this month where everyone is welcome: https://ago.ca/events/brian-porter-and-donald-schmitt-conversation.

Take care,

Stephan

Many of you will recall the Wolfgang Tillmans lecture that sold out in minutes, back in March. That lecture, part of the Rapp lecture series on Contemporary Art, was recorded and has now been uploaded to the Gallery’s Youtube account. Watch from the comfort of your own home, HERE.

Hello Everyone, – a long and detailed message from the Food & Beverage Team – please see below:

With the Espresso Bar reopening in the Joey and Toby Tanenbaum Sculpture Atrium and the Members’ Lounge set to reopen soon on Wednesday, May 24, the F&B team is sharing with staff more details about these exciting changes.

Read on for how you can enjoy your morning coffee at the Espresso Bar and what our Members can expect in the Lounge!

What’s happening?

• Beginning Tuesday, May 16, morning café service will move from the AGO Bistro to the Espresso Bar. 
• From 10:30 am to 11:30 am daily, staff, volunteers, and visitors can purchase beverages and pastries only from the Espresso Bar in the Atrium.
• Staff can only receive take-out service during this time window. Please bring a clean, reusable to-go mug.
• After 11:30 am, staff and volunteers can still purchase hot beverages, and items from the Bistro à la carte menu. Pastries will only available at the Espresso Bar.

Café Service in the Espresso Bar – As of Tuesday, May 16 from 10:30 am to 11:30 am (continuing daily)

What are the details?

• Beverages and pastries will be plated to be enjoyed while seated in the Atrium. Disposable packaging will only be provided for to-go pastries.

Why move café service to the Espresso Bar?

• The Atrium provides a better-suited café environment.
• It creates a lively space in the Atrium that will encourage visitors to stop and take their own coffee breaks.
• It provides Members with a food option before daily Lounge service at 11:30 am.
• It allows the Bistro staff to focus on lunch and dinner service.

The Norma Ridley Members’ Lounge Update – Reopening Wednesday, May 24

What are the details?

• The Members’ Lounge operates on a “first come, first serve” basis – no reservation required.
• Members can bring a guest into the Lounge. Members with guest privileges do not require general admission tickets, but additional guests do.
• As of reopening, Afternoon Tea will not be returning to the Members’ Lounge.
• The only coat check available to Members remains by the main entrance to the Gallery.
• Staff and volunteers are required to have memberships in order to use the Lounge
• The Lounge has a limited, 50 person capacity.
• For more detailed information, read the full Members’ FAQ on the AGO website here.

Members’ Lounge Hours

• General hours are as follows:
  • Tuesday and Thursday: 10:30 am – 4:30 pm
  • Wednesday and Friday: 10:30 am – 8:30 pm
  • Saturday and Sunday: 10:30 am – 5 pm
• Food service hours are as follows:
  • Wednesday- Thursday & Saturday – Sunday: 11:30 am – 4:30 pm
  • Friday: 11:30 am – 7 pm

Questions?

• If you have an urgent question or concern, please email [email protected]. 

Founded by Josef Adamu in Toronto in 2017, Sunday School is a creative agency that brings together visual artists from across Africa and the diaspora to share compelling stories and foreground notions of identity, fashion, and culture at the intersection of art and education. Feels Like Home highlights work from three series: The Hair Appointment (2018), Ten Toes Down (2021), and Jump Ball (2019–ongoing), and considers contemporary discourses around the notion of home. 

Join Sunday School creative director Josef Adamu and the AGO’s Emilie Croning to celebrate the opening of the new exhibition, Friday May 5, 7pm, Gallery level 2 – room 248.

Or join the panel discussion with the filmmakers on Saturday May 6, at 2pm in Jackman Hall. Details, HERE.

CASSATT – MCNICOLL: IMPRESSIONISTS BETWEEN WORLDS

This groundbreaking exhibition brings together for the first time the work of two extraordinary women Impressionist painters, Mary Cassatt (American, 1844-1926) and Helen McNicoll (Canadian, 1879-1915).  Renowned for their depictions of modern womanhood, their work had a profound impact on the development and proliferation of Impressionism in North America.

A generation apart, educated in Philadelphia and Montreal, Cassatt and McNicoll both left North America for Europe in their early 20s to study and pursue art professionally. Cassatt was an original member of the Impressionist movement in Paris, and a generation later, McNicoll contributed to the movement’s evolution and spread around the globe. 

Curated by Caroline Shields, Curator of European Art at the AGO, and showcasing more than 65 artworks including paintings, prints and sketch books, this innovative exhibition will be accompanied by a fully illustrated publication. Opens May 31!

SARINDAR DHALIWAL: WHEN I GROW UP I WANT TO BE A NAMER OF PAINT COLOURS

Sarindar Dhaliwal: When I grow up I want to be a namer of paint colours exhibits more than 40 years of artmaking by the South Asian Canadian artist. Characterized by intense colour and compelling imagery, Dhaliwal’s art investigates memory, identity and migration. In this, her first AGO solo exhibition, the artist’s significant contribution to Canadian art will be illustrated by a selection of key works, including meticulously rendered drawings and mixed media works from the 1980s to the 2000s, alongside large-scale installations and recent photography. Curated by Renée van der Avoird, Associate Curator, Canadian Art, this exhibition highlights two recent acquisitions: Hey Hey Paula (1998) and the cartographer’s mistake: the Radcliffe Line (2012). Opens July 22.

See more of the works in this exhibition, on the AGOinsider’s photo gallery, linked HERE.

Last night I met with the Volunteers of the AGO who, after a few years, gathered together in person to celebrate their contributions to the museum. Really, their contributions are massive. Volunteers engage our public and help fulfill our mission of facilitating learning. It was a fun party and I was super pleased to acknowledge their tremendous impact at the AGO.

Today the Espresso Bar opens in the Tanenbaum Sculpture Atrium. We are ready to go! Check it out and spread the word. Thanks to everyone who helped support this move. (We have moved it out of Galleria Italia for the time being to make way for KAWS art installation.) 

Take care,

Stephan

Hello everyone,

I am writing my weekly message a little early this week.

Please take a moment to read this important update and be sure to share it with others.

With Leadership Team members Rocco Saverino stepping away in January and Lisa Clements’ upcoming departure this week – and Mike Mahoney’s increasing involvement with the Dani Reiss Modern & Contemporary Gallery expansion project – I have been reflecting on the executive needs of the AGO in the next 5 years or so. I have decided to make some changes to the composition of Leadership Team. I will be re-configuring a few key roles and decreasing the size of LT by one position.

What will the new LT look like?

I will be combining the Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director, Corporate Special Projects & Operations into one role going forward. The title for this position will be Chief Financial & Operating Officer. This type of role is emerging as common practice in the corporate and non-profit environments. The areas reporting to the CFOO will be: Financial Services, Plant & Building Infrastructure, Facility Services, IT, Protection Services.

In considering how our audience has shifted over the past few years and the prioritization of our brand strategy, I will be making some changes in this area too. The role of Chief, Communications & Brand will be expanded to incorporate the retail and F&B portfolios. The Chief Brand & Business Officer will ensure that our brand and visitor experience is consistent throughout the museum and will work to maximize revenues across all revenue streams.

When will these changes take place?

As you know, we currently have an Interim CFO in place (Refat Jiwani) while we conduct a thorough market search for the two new roles. Refat will continue through the May to mid-July period.

We anticipate having both positions filled this summer, likely early July. The recruiting firm Caldwell Partners has been engaged to source the best talent available to fill these critical roles.

How will these changes impact me?

Overall, I am confident that these changes are positive for all of us and will further advance our strategic priorities. The changes will not have a high degree of impact on day-to-day activities but will result in efficiencies (including in the IT area) and an increasing emphasis on serving our public. Staff in retail and F&B will have a slightly different reporting structure. And with one less person reporting directly to me, I will have more time to focus on achieving our AGO 2028 vision.

Finally – for the next few months while the search for the new Chief Brand & Business Officer is under way, Herman Lo, Director of Visitor Experience, will join LT meetings and act as a liaison between LT and the rest of the Communications & Brand team. I will also be meeting bi-weekly with the Communications & Brand team leaders to help formalize a smooth transition period.

I will share more updates regarding these roles as things progress.

Thank you,

Stephan   

Hello Volunteers,

In celebration of National Volunteer Week – we are looking forward to hosting you all for the Volunteer Annual Party – an evening reception in the AGO Bistro – Thursday April 27, from 5:00pm – 8:00pm. If you haven’t RSVP’d already, please do at: https://forms.gle/u1qKWsSPgxgDsbpo6

Volunteer Toronto is celebrating volunteers across the GTA and has sent us this special discount code so all volunteers can enjoy a 20% discount on performances by Cirque Du Soleil, Kooza – running now until Sunday June 18. You can use this link or type in the promo code VTNVW23 at check-out.