Are you feeling creative? Join us for some festive and friendly competition at the Great Gingerbread Make Off on Wednesday, December 18 from 2 to 4 pm in Seminar Room 1.
Teams will compete to make the greatest gingerbread creation of all time.
Interested in participating? Get together with up to five colleagues as a department or a group and register your team before the deadline. If you’d like to join a team, let us know and we’ll place you on a team.
Please register by Thursday, December 12 at noon (12 pm).
To register your team, contact Cassandra Engineer, 416 979 6660 x6378 before the deadline.
Not competing? Come by to cheer on your colleagues and enjoy some holiday treats. See you all there!
The 2019 holiday e-card is now available for employees and volunteers who wish to extend holiday greetings to external clients and colleagues.
To send the e-card, please save the AGO image below and insert it in an email along with the “warm wishes” link (below). The link takes recipients to a holiday video message. Feel free to include a customized message when you send the link and graphic.
Greetings, Please click the link below for our holiday message.
The AGO is always looking for ways to improve our visitors’ experience. You may have noticed some renovations happening in the East end of the Concourse (the former home of Art Rental & Sales). The area is currently undergoing some changes to become a “rest and recharge” spot. Visitors will be invited to lounge, eat, and work as part of their overall museum experience. The new spot will include a stand-up bar area to relax with an caféAGO coffee, a farm table to work at with friends, charging areas for phones and other devices and soft furnishings and lighting to accommodate casual meetings, socializing and a place to hang out. The goal is to open this space in January, with exact dates still to be finalized. Stay tuned for more about this new addition that will be a comfortable and friendly way to welcome our audiences!
Have a creative name suggestion for the space? Please share your ideas with Suman Chahal, x6461.
Last week we announced the upcoming departure of Alicia Vandermeer, Deputy Director and Chief Advancement Officer. Mark your calendars – we will have a “good-bye” celebration for Alicia on Monday December 2 from 3-4:30pm in Seminar Room 1. We won’t be hiring a replacement for Alicia because she is simply irreplaceable!
100,000 annual Passholders! Did you know that if every Passholder stood side by side that the line would stretch from the AGO to Prince Edward County? What an amazing achievement! I’m pleased to report that on Wednesday the Board of Trustees unanimously agreed to continue the initiative. There is a lot of work ahead, but this program is a game changer for us.
The most recent biannual National Docents Symposium (NDS) took place October 24-27 in Washington DC. This week attendee Bev Biderman describes her experience.
Two themes that stuck out for me were empathy and VTS (Visual Thinking Strategies). On empathy, multiple speakers mentioned that there is an “empathy deficit” in the world today. (No kidding!) There is now a Centre for Empathy and the Visual Arts at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. And there also exists a touring Empathy Museum. I plan to develop my own Empathy theme tour covering works of art that may be especially effective at evoking empathy in a viewer.
VTS was treated as the gold standard of museum touring strategies, and to my amazement there were presentations on many museums’ collaborations with medical schools to teach medical students the art of close looking. In addition, police officers are working with art museums to learn close looking through VTS. [You can read more about VTS in the previous post by Barb Keilhauer.]
A third interesting theme was “tackling difficult subjects” in museums — which generally meant tactfully touring politically fraught exhibits on race, specifically exhibits related to African Americans. The lessons were there for us too in dealing with Indigenous issues: lots of collaboration with the community, and extra sensitivity training of docents.
–Bev Biderman
You can read the previous post about NDS by Barb Keilhauer here.
I am in Boston attending the annual Bizot Group gathering of
directors from the top 50 international museums. This event is a useful way to
engage with peers and learn what other museums are doing to advance their
missions. I will be sharing information about the AGO’s new Annual Pass, which
is of deep interest within our sector.
The Public Programming and Learning (PP & L) team welcomed delegates this week from the Louvre and the Pompidou Centre. The team, along with colleagues from the ROM and Montreal Museum of Fine Art, discussed learning and programming and spent time in the Weston Family Learning Centre. The Louvre is building a new education centre and they took home many ideas for developing their learning spaces for new audiences.
Your new
Volunteer Council has been meeting monthly and we are pleased to share with you
three of the items we are reviewing on your behalf.
Diversity & Inclusion Survey results:
The AGO is in
the process of disseminating the D&I survey results to staff and
volunteers. We were privileged to have
been given a sneak peak at the survey results and look forward to brainstorming
ideas with you about how we can contribute to making the AGO a diverse and
inclusive space for all.
Margaret Machell Study Grant:
This grant
has been an important benefit for volunteers. At this time, the funds
originally assigned for the grant are exhausted. And so, we are working with
the AGO Finance team to procure the funds needed to support the Study Grant
going forward and hope to have an update for you in the coming months.
Never heard
of the Margaret Machell Study Grant? Learn more about it from this 2017
Volunteer Blog post here!
Volunteer Connection:
We’ve heard
from many of you that you’d love more opportunities to connect with other
volunteers outside of your regular shift. We’ve got a few ideas we’ll be
sharing with you soon and welcome any suggestions from you.
We look
forward to your questions or feedback. Contact your VC President, Maya
Kotlarenko, at [email protected].
Warm regards
“You make a living by what you get. You make a life by what you give.” – Winston Churchill
The most recent biannual National Docents Symposium (NDS) took place October 24-27 in Washington DC. This week attendee Barb Keilhauer describes her experience.
The NDS conference in Washington DC was highly pleasurable. DC is a great town, despite the current political climate; streets are spotless, gardens are blooming, taxi drivers are history buffs and the museums are free!
Cocktail Hour!
I gave a workshop on Visual Thinking Strategies. This is a technique developed by Abigail Housen and Philip Yenawine that enhances visitor participation by asking three basic questions:
What’s going on in this picture?
What do you see that makes you say that?
Is there anything more?
The key is to facilitate and paraphrase visitor responses without judgement. The result leaves each visitor feeling relaxed and validated while exercising their own critical thinking skills. It can work on any art work, modern or ancient, and allows for no wrong answers!
My presentation was popular – the workshop room was slated for 75 participants, the largest room available. I was able to roam the room with my portable microphone to make sure everyone was included. Folks were very enthusiastic and enjoyed their own participation looking at various art works. I noticed a lot of peripheral talk about the VTS technique in other workshops; clearly it is gaining steam across the country as a useful enhancement tool.
[Note: You can find more about VTS by watching the YouTube video “Visual Thinking Strategies: Terra Foundation for American Art” or by visiting the VTS website.]
Barb Keilhauer and Margaret Johnston
We had wonderful lunch time speakers including the new Director of the National Gallery of Washington, Kaywin Feldman. These speakers were some of the best I’ve heard, giving insight and facts into the changing of museums and potential future of these institutions.
I proudly did an offsite visit to the Canadian and Finnish Embassies, with their beautiful architecture and art collections, as well as a visit to the National Museum of Women in the Arts. On Saturday I sadly had to chose between the Freer Sackler Gallery and seeing a friend sing at the National Cathedral, an astonishing recently finished church just north of Embassy Row. I chose my friend!
Muskoka chairs at the Canadian Embassy
National Docents Symposiums are wonderful. I saw old friends that I had made at prior events and made new friends, not to mention the several nights I sat at the Hotel Bar and made even more friends watching the World Series. Congratulations, Washington Nationals! It was a rare and wonderful opportunity to meet like minded folks from across North America and share ideas. So glad to have gone!
–Barbara Keilhauer
lobby of the Mayflower Hotel
Interested in developing a presentation for the next NDS in 2021? Contact Melissa Smith to get started!
You can read the previous post on Shelagh Barrington’s NDS experience here.
Find the perfect gift for that special someone during Members’ Shopping Week at shopAGO!
AGO volunteers can double their discount in-store, and enjoy 20%* off all regular priced merchandise. (Please make sure to show your volunteer ID when shopping). The extra discount replaces the standard 10% discount and includes just about *everything in-store. With a selection of elegant art prints and books, home décor, jewellery, stationery and much more, there’s something for everyone!
(Note: *Some restrictions apply. Additional discount does not apply to Early Rubens products or items currently on sale)
Throughout Members’ Shopping Week you’ll also have the chance to meet talented artisans from across the country, specializing in jewelry, design, chocolates, and more. Drop in! (And Happy Shopping!)
Holiday joy in each and every bite! AGO Employees and Volunteers are invited to pre-order exclusive sweets and treats during our annual Bake Sale.
Let us do the work for you this year so you’ll have more time to spend with your family and friends!
AGO classics like French Canadian tourtière and mincemeat tarts are just a few of the treats you can expect.
Impress friends and family with our Assorted Cookie Set – perfect for gatherings and after dinner.
Or relax with our Afternoon Tea Bundle which includes a 3.5oz tin of Sloane Tea, house-made preserves, maple walnut shortbread, vanilla lemon sugar cookies, biscuits, and scones.
Ready to order? Click HERE to pre-order between November 5 – December 13.
Please note that all orders must be received by December 13, 2019. Pick-up your items on Thursday, December 19. 11:30 am – 6:30 pm. Limited quantities are available and all orders are final.
