Hello everybody!

“September tries its best to have us forget summer”  – Bernard Williams

September, the month of new beginning’s and fresh starts. Do you still feel that push to create new rituals? I imagine with that feeling of getting back into a routine, some of you will be missing your volunteer shifts at the gallery. We still have no news about a time frame for a possible return. As many of you know, most of the AGO’s staff is currently working from home. The staff that are currently in the building are here for essential operations of the gallery. We want you to know that we miss you all and most of all our visitors are missing you and the expertise that you share with them on their visits! We will continue to share updates as they come up! 

Finally, with summer still in our clasp, I (Nicole) will be going on a much anticipated camping trip to Bon Echo Provincial Park. There I hope to roast many a marshmallow, catch some stars and meander about in a canoe! As always, Trish, Christine and Jonathan will be around to answer any questions that may come up that week at [email protected]. I also wanted to re-share a little taste of summer with this super quirky and charming video of AGO’s Andrea Seaborn’s Westfalia camper van. Enjoy!

Please read on!

Closing Soon: Sandra Brewster: Blur. Opening Soon: Haegue Yang: Emergence

Closing Soon

Sandra Brewster: Blur is closing September 13th in gallery 238

Margaret Priest: The Construction Series and Concrete Matters is closing September 13th in gallery 201 and 247

Lisa Reihana: In Pursuit of Venus [infected] is closing October 4th in gallery 232 and 233

Arte Povera is closing October 4th in gallery 224S

Opening Soon

Mary Wrinch: Painted Life is opening September 26 to March 28, 2020 in gallery 201 and 247

Michael Belmore (brother of Rebecca!) is opening September 26 to March 28, 2020 in gallery 238

Haegue Yang: Emergence is opening October 1st on the 5th floor

The Open Door: Mary Hiester Reid and Michael Helen McNicholl is opening October 10th in gallery 126

Special Exhibition in Focus: Illusions!

This week we re-focus on Illusions: The Art of Magic, which has been extended until November 8th! Now is the time to visit this collection of posters from the golden age of magic. With the greatly reduced capacities for both special exhibits, now is the time to check these out to avoid disappointment!  I have shared an engaging talk and magic performance below with Julian Cox and David Ben, here. Take a deeper dive into Harry Houdini’s life, by reading this illuminating article in The New Yorker. 

A Closer Look: NEON

We are continuing to highlight some of the many interesting talks the AGO has been hosting online. This week, we recommend you check out Close Looking: NEON with Renée van der Avoird, Assistant Curator of Canadian Art and Nadia Abraham, Assistant Interpretive Planner as they discuss two artworks from our collection that use neon as a sculptural and graphic material. Namely, Robert Markle’s Angel (from Markleangelo’s) which is pictured above and Lauren Woodcook’s “Untitled”. This is a short but super interesting talk that I hope you enjoy.

Robert Markle is a Mohawk Artist who was born in Hamilton. His career was eclectic he was an artist, writer and musician. He frequented burlesque establishments on Yonge Street in Toronto as inspiration for his life drawing. His piece Angel was originally commissioned in 1979 for a restaurant called Markleangelo’s which was located in the St. Lawrence market. This piece is located in gallery 237.

Laura Woodcook was a Toronto based Artist that worked in video, photography, sculpture and installation. Working with quotes this work is called “Untitled” which was gifted to us by the Artist in 2016 shortly before her death.These neon quotation marks are hung at the south entrance near the library.

There are several interesting talks coming up next week, namely on Tuesday, September 8th at 4pm, join Toronto artist Margaret Priest for an illustrated talk about her drawings, sculptures, paintings and prints to coincide with the exhibition of The Monument to Construction Workers, and a selection of related drawings and sculptures from the late 1980s to mid-2000s. You can sign up for the Zoom talk here. 

Be well and stay healthy. 

Jonathan, Christine, Trish and Nicole

[email protected]
416-979-6660 ext 397

Hello everyone,

I’m sure you’ll all agree that this summer has been different, for a variety of reasons. And now here we are at Labour Day weekend. We have all experienced the summer months in different ways. At the AGO, staff have been participating in AGOU, providing digital content online and re-opening to our public. Some of us have taken “staycations” or learned new skills or baked a ton of bread. I have enjoyed spending time outdoors, including foraging for mushrooms – yes, that is a mushroom I am holding, not sourdough! I cooked it 4 ways and served it up to my family. Delicious.

My appreciation for nature in Canada has increased considerably this summer. There is much wonder to behold at this time of year, including star gazing. Here is an article about Indigenous star stories that you might enjoy: https://thewalrus.ca/space-teaching-indigenous-star-stories/

September is always a hectic month and this year even more so. A reminder to consider the AGO’s Flexible Work Program and talk to you manager if you think flex hours would help balance your work and family life obligations.

There are a number of new installations being planned for this fall. Thank you to all the exhibitions staff who are working hard to install Haegue Yang: Emergence; The Open Door: Mary Hiester Reid and Helen McNicoll; and Ragnar Kjartanasson: Death is Elsewhere. In spite of all the uncertainty we are facing, there is a lot of great art to look forward to.

Stephan

We are loving the new AGO Artist Spotlight series! Get to know some amazing artists. Check out profiles, interviews, artist-curated selections of their recent work, works-in-progress, research, and ideas:

Julie Voyce

Julie Voyce loves to paint, make toys, draw, put together decorations, assemble small books, print, make occasional pieces of jewelry and embroider.

I love to paint, make toys, draw, put together decorations, assemble small books, print, make occasional pieces of jewelry and embroider. I got to build sculptures, collaborate, try animation, design, do mail art and peddle off DIY trinkets at public events. Billions of small things can be absorbed in the course of a brief errand. Over time, a lot of different methods are required just to dig some of them up. 

AGO: What was the inspiration for this artwork or series?
Voyce: These Teddies began when holdable gifts were needed. 

AGO: Tell us about a place or a space where you most love making your work?
Voyce: I enjoy working on the VIA train. It can involve drawing, embroidery or recording the scenery. It has always involved a picnic with coffee from the cart. 

AGO: Are you in dialogue with any other artists or creative peers about your practice? If so, how does this dialogue feed your work?
Voyce: People who think outside the box keep me on my toes. Their honest reactions form a bridge between studio mind sanctuary and public forums. Brainstorming sessions can start with a great pair of shoes.

I attended the Ontario College of Art: pre-degree with four years of nothing but studio. Graduated in 1980. My work has spent time in various publications, an exhibition truck, shop windows, Union Station, a Trash Palace, a vending machine, galleries and a tree in Grange Park. 

It has been shown in Toronto since 1979. The work has travelled across Canada. It has visited the States, the UK, Italy, Australia, Korea, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Japan and Russia. It lives in public collections, in private collections and in an Acker box. 

I am represented by General Hardware Contemporary in Toronto.

Other Artist Spotlight features we love:

• Diane Borsato
• Cecilio Escobar
• Priya “Pree” Rehal

Hello everyone,

Earlier today I spoke at (an Employee) Town Hall. I always try to scroll through Zoom screens to see your faces. I spoke about the incredible work everyone has done to fulfill our mission on-line during closure and now on-site since re-opening last month. I am proud of what we have accomplished in the face of very real health and economic challenges. The financial pressure on our museum in the absence of pre-COVID revenue generation is considerable.  I also reflected on recent exhibitions we have done to move the dial forward on diversity and inclusion. It makes me very happy that our public is back in the building. We are facing many difficulties but we are still able to serve our public through art and learning.

While I am not a big sports guy, I have enjoyed the playful exchanges between the Toronto Raptors and the AGO in recent weeks. See the screenshots below – I appreciate the call outs from the world champs! However, things took a very different turn this week following the shooting of Jacob Blake. I have to say, I have been struck by the response of NBA and WNBA players and their stance to boycott games in support of racial justice. Many journalists are writing about this. Some AGO sports fans passed on this article from The Toronto Star:

https://www.thestar.com/sports/doug_smiths_sports_blog/2020/08/27/an-exhausting-and-emotional-day-is-just-another-step-in-an-exhau.html

I wish the Raptors the best of luck in their play-off run.

Stephan

Volunteers, we’re looking for your feedback! This summer we piloted the AGO Volunteer Connector series, a weekly social drop-in Zoom call with rotating topics designed to keep our community engaged through the summer. At the time, we never imagined our community would be off-site for months ahead, so now we’re looking for ways to freshen and support a similar series this Fall.

We’re looking for your ideas: what would you like to see more of? Which week did you enjoy the most? How would you like to remain engaged? And how can YOU help (would you like to share you skills?)

Send your ideas to Holly. We’re all ears!

Thank you to everyone who cast their vote to support a project through the Volunteer Endowment Trust. The results are in! 85 votes were cast, and we’re thrilled to share that AGO volunteers chose to fund ongoing research and exhibition support for The Montgomery Collection of Caribbean Photographs

The Montgomery Collection is an incredible project, led and curated by the AGO’s Julie Crooks, Associate Curator, Photography.

In 2019, the AGO acquired one of the world’s most significant collections of its kind, The Montgomery Collection — 3,500 photographs from the Circum-Caribbean, dating from 1840 and 1940. This collection brings to life the changing economies, environments and communities that emerged following the abolishment of slavery. It also highlights the work of many regional and international photographers and studios who documented the lands, people, and cultures.

Noteworthy is that this acquisition was made possible with the support of individuals from Toronto’s Black and Caribbean communities. The AGO takes great pride in acquiring a collection of such magnitude and is committed to undertaking rigorous scholarly research of this rich material.

The Gallery has hired a researcher, Camila Collins Araiza, to work with our curatorial team with a goal of presenting an inaugural exhibition of the Montgomery Collection in 2021. AGO volunteers’ support, in both the research phase and exhibition will enable the AGO to celebrate this important collection, tell new stories, and engage the large Caribbean community in Toronto, and indeed in Canada and beyond. Note: While this exhibition does not take place until the 2021/22 fiscal year, a significant portion of the project is pre-exhibition research, which also requires significant financial support and these funders will be recognized at the exhibition as well.

Learn more about the Montgomery Collection:

Art in the Spotlight featuring artist and Toronto Photo Laureate Michèle Pearson Clarke, in conversation with AGO Associate Curator of Photography Julie Crooks

Julie Crooks is Associate Curator, Photography at the AGO where she has curated the exhibitions Mickalene Thomas: Femmes Noires (2018), Free. Black. North (2017) and Women in Focus Collection Rotations (2017-ongoing). Prior to joining the AGO in 2017, Julie Crooks curated exhibitions for many organizations including BAND (Black Artists Networks in Dialogue) and the Royal Ontario Museum’s Of Africa project. She holds a PhD from the Department of History of Art and Archaeology at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, U.K. Crooks’s area of specialty is Art of Africa and the Diaspora.

Next up: Volunteers can look forward to an exclusive Curator’s Talk with Julie Crooks, hosted on Zoom, later this Fall – we’ll keep you posted!

Thank you to Prints & Drawings volunteers Susan Davidson, who sent along this recommendation for free learning resources, (click here) recently launched by the University of Toronto, School of Continuing Studies.

We like the looks of The University Lecture Series (offered on Demand), in particular:

• Toronto Through the Lens of Public Sculpture and Art &
• The Power of Kindness

To access these resources, click on a course and you’ll be taken to a subscribe page. Enjoy!

For those of you who missed our recent AGO Volunteers Connector call with Stephan, we recorded the talk for you to listen to at your own leisure. We really appreciated Stephan’s candour and transparency in sharing his insights on this strange time. With that in mind, please note that this is an exclusive AGO volunteers talk and not for individual distribution. Please do not share beyond our community.

You can access the Zoom call, here. You’ll be prompted to provide a password. Please enter: kn2EU.yK

If you have any trouble accessing the recording, let us know!

Hello everybody!

Do you feel it? The crisp cool mornings and evenings of a slowly encroaching late summer dare I say early Fall?!? For many this is a long awaited time of cooler temperatures, sharpened pencils and the smell of autumnal leaves. For others (such as myself) the school anxiety and the loss of the sense of freedom that summer brings as well as the light that comes with it! How are you celebrating the last bit of summer? Cottaging? Camping? Watching the sunrise (for your early birds) or the sunset. How are you making this time special? 

Please read on!

Adventures in the Collection

This week Jonathan shares his experience of his first stroll back through the gallery since his return:

I’ve been working a few days a week in the gallery since July 30^th and haven’t taken time to have a good look around so I took a stroll yesterday to stop in and visit some of my old favourites.  I have loved the Group of Seven since I was a kid, and their works always whisk me back to my halcyon days.  This past week it was rather chilly in Barrie and the smell on the air is hinting that the late summer is already giving way to autumn.  Leaves have begun to fall in my yard, and while it makes for a lovely scene, being Toronto born and bred I can’t help but feeling at home when looking at the fallen leaves on a concrete sidewalk and an asphalt road.   I just had to spend some time with Lawren Harris’ Houses, Richmond Street.  I look at this painting and can imagine the perfect autumn day, a little warm in the sunshine and a little cool in the shade, the sounds of the dried leaves rustling in the breeze and the smell of a fire burning in someone’s fireplace.  I don’t know about you, but I am looking forward to cooler days, apple picking, pumpkin pie, and beautiful colours on the trees.  I hope all of you are keeping well!

Art in the Spotlight: Kim Ondaatje

We are continuing to highlight some of the many interesting talks the AGO has been hosting online. This week, we recommend you check out  Art in the Spotlight where Devyani Saltzman, Director of Public Programming, and Renee van der Avoird, Assistant Curator of Canadian Art, discuss Kim Ondaatje’s House on Piccadilly Street screenprints and the psychological dimensions of interior spaces. Kim Ondaatje was part of a small but thriving arts community in London, Ontario where they developed their own distinct style known as London regionalism. She is unique for being one of the few working women artists in Canada in the the late 60s. This is a timely work as many of us having been spending copious amounts of time at home. What is home when you are inside 24 hours a day? Doors from the House on Piccadilly Street Series purchased in 1972 – with hopes of being presented soon, however everything in the exhibition schedule has now been affected by Covid-19. While we have several Kim Ondaajte works in our collection, we currently only have Hearn Plant, Toronto Harbour up in the Canadian collection. Delve further with our most recent AGO Insider article.

Be well and stay healthy. 

Jonathan, Christine, Trish and Nicole

[email protected]
416-979-6660 ext 397

Thank you to everyone who participated in our Mindfulness workshop last week, as part of the AGO Volunteers Connector series, skillfully lead by Volunteer Council Member Barbara Glaser, and Gallery Guide (and expert facilitator!) Anne Hart.

They’ve put together a resource list we’re sharing here (see also the Full list emailed earlier last week) and Barbara also recommends Demystifying Mindfulness, a free course offered through Coursera, for those interested in continuing on.

Further Reading – Books: (check these out at your local library)

The Miracle of Mindfulness By: Thich Nhat Hans

A Fearless Heart By: Thupten Jinpa Phd

Full Catastrophe Living By: Jon Kabat Zinn

Mindfulness for Beginners By: Jon Kabat Zinn

THE Fearless Heart By: Pema Chodron

Apps to Download: (via the App store)