Hello volunteers! Last week, Debbie Johnsen, Manager, Modern and Contemporary Collections, joined us for a lively and informative Zoom presentation on Moments in Modernism. Debbie is a huge fan of the behind-the-scenes work of artists and her presentation is informed by beautiful studio shots of artists and their works. Sharing the link here for all to enjoy:
Moments and Modernism has been the talk of the Gallery this summer, as it unearths from the vault many classics of the Collection. Curator Debbie Johnsen is our Manager of Modern and Contemporary Collections, and those of us who have worked with Debbie for a long time know her as the glue that keeps this department running! She holds a wealth of information, and is not someone who usually gets the spotlight, so we’re thrilled she is joining us to share all of her insights into this show she co-curated with Director & CEO, Stephan Jost.
We’re grateful Debbie’s able to join us in a busy summer season to share all the behind-the-scenes information that volunteers love. This talk is for all volunteers! We know timing is tight, so please rest assured this talk will be recorded and shared for those who can’t make it.
Selected AGO exhibitions: Moments in Modernism (2024) Bright Signs: Spotlight on Video Art (2024)
Background: Prior to becoming the Manager, Modern & Contemporary Collections at the AGO in 2023, Debbie Johnsen worked in various roles in the Gallery’s Department of Modern & Contemporary Art since 2011, most recently as Curatorial Coordinator. She provided key support for major exhibitions such as Brian Jungen: Friendship Centre (2019), Vija Celmins: To Fix the Image in Memory (2019) and Theaster Gates: How to Build a House Museum (2016). As Manager, Modern & Contemporary Collections, Debbie is responsible for the custodianship, research, and installation of the Modern & Contemporary Collections. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree and a Master’s Degree in Art History from the University of Toronto.
This is the last week of the exhibition KAWS: Family. I will sincerely miss the show, but it must continue onto the next venue, which is Chrystal Bridges Museum in the US. I want to thank everyone who was involved in making this exhibition a success, and particularly give a shout-out to Julian Cox.
Yesterday the first piece of steel arrived for the Dani Reiss Modern and Contemporary Gallery – see images below. Once the foundation is complete, the building will start to be erected. The massing and scale of the structure will take shape once steelwork is done later this fall. There is a new banner over the Jackman Hall entrance that shows a rendering of the building.
I will be off for the next two weeks visiting family in Switzerland. My family comes from two small alpine towns, and it will be good to practice my Swiss-German!
Take care,
Stephan
P.S. To those of you who will be celebrating the richness of Caribbean culture this weekend – enjoy!
Hello Volunteers, I’m happy to share this exhibition launch video for the Pacita Abad exhibition, opening October 9, and continuing through January 2025. This video provides a unique sneak peek into the exhibition, and an introduction to the project team. Fun fact: the first speaker, Exhibition Project Manager Brittney Sproule, is a former AGO Gallery Guide volunteer. A reminder, launch videos are internal communications, and not polished public presentations. – Enjoy!
No password needed to access – simply click on the link to view: *VOLUNTEERS, WE ARE SORRY THIS LINK AND MANY OTHER VIDEOS HOSTED ON ARTCLOUD ARE CURRENTLY INACCESSIBLE DUE TO THE CYBERATTACK.
Pacita Abad, European Mask , 1990. Acrylic, silkscreen, thread on canvas. Tate: Purchased with funds provided by the Asia Pacific Acquisitions Committee 2019. Courtesy Pacita Abad Art Estate and Tate
EXHIBITION OVERVIEW
The exuberant and wide-ranging works of the late Philippine-born artist Pacita Abad make their Canadian debut as part of her first retrospective. This acclaimed exhibition includes more than 100 artworks showcasing Abad’s experiments in different mediums: textiles, works on paper, paintings, prints, and a range of archival material and studio ephemera. Much of Abad’s work is defined by her engagement in social justice and her exploration of materials. She is best known for her large-scale hanging trapuntos, a form of quilted painting made of stitched and stuffed canvas.
Sometimes I focus my weekly message on major activities like big exhibitions or the large expansion underway.
Other times I attempt to point out the details that help make the AGO a magical and wonderful place:
– I love seeing young campers enter the museum in the morning and be greeted by summer staff and volunteers. The camps are so full of creativity and joy.
– I enjoyed viewing large portraits of women, one by Emily Carr and one by Augustus Edwin John (of The Marchesa Casati), next to one another in the Margaret Eaton Gallery.
Earlier in the week we had a massive rainstorm. I know it is odd because I wrote about torrential rain only recently. It is clear that extreme weather is becoming more common.
When I looked out of my office window I saw Grange Park fill with water – a literal lake was created. By the next morning the center of the park was back to being a green lawn. When the AGO renovated Grange Park (yes, the AGO owns the park and we have a partnership with the City who manages it), we considered climate change. The main lawn is designed to become a reservoir when there is extreme rain. It holds the water until flood water in the storm drains subsides and only then releases the water on the main lawn. It is an example of how good design and helping to mitigate the impact of climate change can go hand-in-hand.
As we know, construction of the Dani Reiss Modern and Contemporary Gallery is underway. The building has been designed to very high environmental standards by the architects and engineers. Indeed, the expansion will operate without burning fossil fuel. In the future, I can share more about how we are making the building more green.
Several weeks ago, Dr. Audrey Hudson let me know that she will be leaving the AGO to take on the role of Kathleen C. Sherrerd Deputy Director, Learning and Engagement at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Audrey joined the AGO in 2017 and was appointed Richard & Elizabeth Currie Chief, Education & Programming in 2020.
Of course we all have mixed emotions. On one hand, I am very proud to see Audrey’s career blossoming. On the other hand, I will miss Audrey, both professionally and personally. Audrey has had a profound impact on the AGO, and her leadership and legacy has changed the AGO for the better.
Dr. Audrey Hudson
There are many achievements. She has deep knowledge of art and a passion for the many communities we serve. There are too many achievements to list, but one example stands out — Audrey was the driving force behind the Virtual School Programs. We estimated we would get 55,000 students, and we were way off! In the first year of the program, we served over 750,000 students! I think a hallmark of her legacy is high quality and popular educational programs that have that wonderful mix of rigor, innovation, and levity.
One of the many things Audrey and I shared was our honesty with each other, even in the toughest of times. We also had big laughs and a common vision to elevate the museum globally and an emphasis on different ways to bring audiences into the AGO.
Leadership is a team sport, and I know that she will be missed by members of the Leadership Team, the Board of Trustees and of course, all the staff and volunteers at the AGO. She is always herself which usually means a blend of candor and humor.
Audrey’s final day with the AGO will be August 23, 2024. Until then, I know you will join me in wishing Audrey well in her new role. Philadelphia is lucky to have her, and I know she will bring wonderful things to the organization, as she did here at the AGO.
Most recently, Audrey has been co-leading the Joint Working Committee with Board Member Liza Mauer. This was not small undertaking, but both of us agreed it was essential to the organizational healing of the AGO. It is still in progress, and Audrey will come back to conclude this chapter in the Fall.
In the coming weeks, we will share next steps to find a suitable replacement who can build on Audrey’s legacy.
Exhibition Dates: October 9, 2024 – January 19, 2025
The exuberant and wide-ranging works of the late Philippine-born artist Pacita Abad make their Canadian debut as part of her first retrospective. This acclaimed exhibition includes more than 100 artworks showcasing Abad’s experiments in different mediums: textiles, works on paper, paintings, prints, and a range of archival material and studio ephemera. Much of Abad’s work is defined by her engagement in social justice and her exploration of materials. She is best known for her large-scale hanging trapuntos, a form of quilted painting made of stitched and stuffed canvas.
Pacita Abad, European Mask , 1990. Acrylic, silkscreen, thread on canvas.
Fleeing the Marcos regime in the Philippines, Abad arrived in the United States in 1970. Largely self-taught, her work resonates with the various artistic communities she encountered on her global travels, incorporating a diversity of cultural traditions and techniques—from Korean ink brush painting to Indonesian batik. Under-recognized in her lifetime, her work is defined by her engagement with social justice and evolving material exploration. Organized by the Walker Arts Center in collaboration with Abad’s estate, the exhibition is curated by Victoria Sung, Phyllis C. Wattis Senior Curator at Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA), and former associate curator, Visual Arts, Walker Art Center; with Matthew Villar Miranda, curatorial associate at BAMPFA, and former curatorial fellow, Visual Arts, Walker Art Center. The AGO presentation will be organized by Renée van der Avoird, Associate Curator, Canadian Art.
Pacita Abad is organized by the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis.
Sonia Boyce, Feeling Her Way, 2022. Commissioned by the British Council for the British Pavilion for the 59th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia 2022.
Recipient of the prestigious Golden Lion prize at the 2022 Venice Biennale, acclaimed British artist Sonia Boyce makes her Canadian debut with an installation combining video, collage, music and sculpture.
Feeling Her Way centers the vocal performances of four Black female musicians: Jacqui Dankworth, Poppy Ajudha, Sofia Jernberg, Tanita Tikaram in a playful and thought-provoking visual and auditory experience. Brought together by Boyce at Abbey Road Studios in London and Atlantis Studios in Stockholm, the vocalists were guided by composer Errollyn Wallen through improvisation, imagination, and exploration.
The audience will encounter colour-tinted videos that take centre stage among immersive and tessellating wallpapers, created by Boyce, as well as golden 3D geometric structures and a reflective display of music memorabilia.
Sonia Boyce: Feeling Her Way is presented at the AGO in partnership with the Toronto Biennial of Art 2024. The Canadian presentation of Sonia Boyce: Feeling Her Way is initiated and organized by the PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art.
ABOUT THE ARTIST:
Sonia Boyce OBE RA (London, UK) emerged in the 1980s as a key figure in the Black British Art Movement. Her recent art practice is primarily concerned with the production and reception of unexpected performative gestures, with an underlying interest in how the personal, the aesthetic, and the political intersect. In 2019, the artist received an OBE for services to art in the Queen’s New Year Honours List, as well as an Honorary Doctorate from the Royal College of Art. In 2016, Boyce was elected a Royal Academician, and received a Paul Hamlyn Artist Award. Between 2012 – 2017, Boyce was Professor of Fine Art at Middlesex University and since 2014 she has been a Professor at University of the Arts London, where she holds the inaugural Chair in Black Art & Design. A three year research project into Black Artists and Modernism culminated with the 2018 BBC Four documentary Whoever Heard of a Black Artist?, exploring the contribution of overlooked artists of African and Asian descent to the story of Modern British art.
AGO campers are here! It gives me great joy to see so many children creating art and having fun together. I’d like to thank Education & Programming staff, camp leaders and volunteers for all their hard work to make the camps safe and organized.
It is also wonderful to see new acquisitions on view in the Irina Moore Gallery. These works have recently been acquired through the Arts of Global Africa and the Diaspora (AGAD) curatorial department. Please take a moment to view the works, which are now part of the AGO’s collection. Also opened this week is Bright Signs: Spotlight on Video Art on the 5th floor. Some of the installations have been on view previously, such as Lisa Reihana’s Venus Infected and Theaster Gates’ Baby Neon, but several pieces have never been displayed. Again, like the new AGAD acquisitions and art featured in Moments in Modernism, all works are from our collections. In many ways these are a gift to future generations.
I am very proud of the quality of content we are offering our public. Last fiscal year, we went all in on exhibitions and programs in an effort to build back our audience from the previous pandemic years. I am pleased to acknowledge that our attendance was 871,152 – the 5th highest attendance in the AGO’s 124-year history. Thank you – everyone – for helping achieve this historic outcome.
Finally – many of you have been directly impacted or have friends and family impacted by Hurricane Beryl in the Caribbean. Islands like Grenada, Carriacou, Petite Martinique, Barbados, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Cayman Islands, Jamaica, and others have been hit hard. It has caused massive destruction and hardship. The changing weather patterns and the intensity of these storms is in large part due to human impact on the environment. Please check in on one another and offer support. There are many ways one can help, including contributing to this fund established by the Government of Grenada: https://pay.gov.gd/ and the Canadian Red Cross.
