Hello Everyone,

This week was another busy one at the AGO. A new video installation featuring the mesmerizing work of Ragnar Kjartansson opens today. The work is comprised of 7 large video screens in a circle and features two couples singing in unison, repeatedly, a sad song of beauty and love. It was acquired with the generous support of one of our trustees, Shabin Mohamed, and her husband Nadir. I am deeply grateful for their support and other donors who have helped enrich and grow our collection.

If you have been working (volunteering) from home for many months, I encourage you to book a ticket and come and see this exhibit and others. It is hard to be away from one another and the art we are so used to viewing together every day. Visit any time and be comforted by the fact that the AGO is open and our work goes on.

We are nearing Remembrance Day next Wednesday, November 11th. Let us never forget.

Stay safe and well, Stephan

It is with great sadness that we share that Adam Lawrence, a member of the Food & Beverage team, passed away over the weekend.

Adam was with the AGO for over 15 years, working most recently as an F&B Outlet Server within our Food & Beverage Department. Understandably, this news has come as a tremendous shock to the Food & Beverage team and the People Division will be arranging specialized grief counselling services for our colleagues in the department.

https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/toronto-on/adam-lawrence-9892952

Witness of change The work of famed West African photographer Malick Sidibé is featured in Documents, 1960s –1970s, a new AGO exhibition exploring documentary photography in a time of change.

The 1960s and 1970s were a time of profound change; as societies shifted, so did documentary photography. Opening October 31 on Level 1 in the Edmond G. Odette Family Gallery, the AGO exhibition Documents, 1960s – 1970s hones in on two pivotal decades by showcasing documentary photography from diverse regions. With colonized countries gaining independence, and power dynamics shifting between people and governments, documentary photographers in the ’60s and ’70s were capturing the energy of change in its many forms.

Presented in collaboration with Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival, Documents features captivating images of public life in West and South Africa, America and Europe during the era. It includes work by Henri Cartier-Bresson, Ernest Cole, Lutz Dille, Charles Gagnon, David Goldblatt, Bhupendra Karia, Paul Kodjo, Martha Rosler, Stephen Shore, Ming Smith, Ian Wallace and Garry Winogrand, as well as a selection of press photographs by Eve Arnold, Robert Cohen and others. Winning its liberation in 1960, the former French colony of Mali in West Africa was a hotbed of carefree youth culture and vibrant nightlife throughout the next two decades—and thanks to photographer Malick Sidibé (1936–2016), we know what it all looked like. Known as the “Eye of Bamako”, Mali’s capital city, Sidibé’s black-and-white 35mm photographs carry a candid intimacy that makes the joy and freedom of his subjects more palpable. They are often uniquely posed, dressed to the nines, showcasing the era’s stunning fashion trends.

Malick Sidibé got his start in the mid-1950s as an apprentice to French photographer Gérard Guillat-Guignard. By 1958, Sidibé opened his own studio, Studio Malick, in which he would develop the previous evening’s party photos, hanging them in the front window as an invitation for party-goers to purchase prints. In the late 1960s, he expanded his practice to include studio portraits, which became an equally iconic aspect of his work. He was known for distinctly positioning his subjects and photographing them against painted or striped backdrops. This became a signature element in his portraiture. Sidibé’s work rose to global notoriety in the 1990s after being featured in Bamako’s first Biennial of African Photography. Subsequently, Sidibé became one of history’s most celebrated African photographers, decorated with numerous major awards and achievements including the Hasselblad Foundation International Award in Photography and The Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement. His work is widely exhibited and held in major collections around the world.

Don’t miss Documents, 1960s – 1970s , opening October 31 on Level 1 in the Edmond G. Odette Family Gallery. This exhibition will unveil a number of recent acquisitions, including works by Malick Sidibé, alongside select loans.

Thank you to volunteer recruiter, Chai Lam for his recommendation to explore Google Arts & Culture, a dedicated website featuring content from over 2000 leading museums and archives who have partnered with the Google Cultural Institute to bring the world’s treasures online! (yes, AGO content, too!)

Happy to put this talk on your radar! Perennial AGO favourite, Christi Belcourt, joins the McMichael’s Chief Curator Sarah Milroy in conversation with artists Christi Belcourt and Bonnie Devine as they discuss upcoming projects at the McMichael and contemporary Indigenous art practice and activism today.

Register via Zoom.

Hello everybody! Hope you are all enjoying the extra hour of sleep on this rainy November day! It feels like the perfect day to hibernate with a good book and warm drink! Hope you are all keeping cozy and safe! I know there are a lot of artists and creatives amongst the group and we would love for you to share pictures of your Halloween décor and pumpkins! Enjoy the below listed picture of our “spooky” AGO sign! Read on!

Curator’s Talk: Adelina Vlas on Haegue Yang!

Since the opening on October 1st, Haegue Yang: Emergence has been abuzz with our visitors (especially during our Saturday activations between 2-4pm. For those of you who missed it, I wanted to share the Curator’s Talk: Adelina Vlas on Haegue Yang which is linked here.

This is the first time a survey exhibition of Yang’s work has been mounted in North America. This isn’t the first time she has worked with AGO (we purchased Slow Dance – Twin Brother back in 2014 which is included in the exhibition). The talk is a great resource to provide insights prior to your visit, and gives a good overview to enjoy from the comforts of home.

Mark your calendars for the upcoming Artist’s Talk with Haegue Yang which is occurring live on Zoom Wednesday, December 2nd at 1pm. You can register for the talk here.

Closing week of Diane Arbus

With Diane Arbus: Photographs, 1956-1971 closing next weekend, I wanted to share an interesting discussion (linked here) between AGO Photography Curator Sophie Hackett and British Photographer Neil Selkirk, who is the only person ever authorized to print Diane Arbus’s work.

When Arbus died in 1971, Selkirk, was asked to create new prints of her work for the landmark retrospective at New York’s Museum of Modern Art and the iconic monograph published by Aperture. This daunting task consisted of combing through 7,000 rolls of film, spending many months in Arbus’s darkroom meticulously trying to duplicate her gelatin silver prints. His intimate relationship with the work has afforded him special insight into Arbus’s technical process and artistic vision. 

Be well and stay healthy,

Trish, Christine and Nicole (VE Managers)

Twenty-four artworks by seven artists acquired at this year’s art fair expand the AGO Collection in new ways.

This is the fifteenth consecutive year the AGO has purchased artwork at Art Toronto, with the assistance of funds raised at the preview. We have acquired new and recent work by artists Rae Johnson, Luke Parnell, Shuvinai Ashoona, Jennifer Rose Sciarrino, Julie Voyce and Moridja Kitenge Banza, in addition to a suite of five historical photographs by Canadian photographer Minna Keene. 

Julian Cox, the AGO’s Deputy Director and Chief Curator, led the museum’s selection committee, which included Georgiana Uhlyarik, Fredrik S. Eaton Curator, Canadian Art; Sophie Hackett, Curator, Photography; Dr. Julie Crooks, Associate Curator, Photography; Wanda Nanibush, Curator, Indigenous Art; Adelina Vlas, Associate Curator, Contemporary Art; Renée van der Avoird, Assistant Curator, Canadian Art; and Alexa Greist, Associate Curator, Prints & Drawings.

“The AGO is proud to be able to acquire works by seven artists at Art Toronto 2020. We arrived at a selection that amplifies and invigorates the collecting priorities across various departments,” says Julian Cox, Deputy Director and Chief Curator, AGO. “In all but one instance, these acquisitions are the first work(s) by the artist to enter the AGO Collection. We take great pride in this, as we do in the commitment made to Canadian artists and those who are, or have been, part of Toronto’s vibrant art community. We thank them for their inspiration and can’t wait to share these works with our public in the months and years ahead.”

You can read about all the works in great detail via this week’s profile in the AGOinsider.

Dear Everyone,

I am very pleased to announce that Alain Graham has been appointed Acting Chief, People, as we search for a replacement for Nan Oldroyd.

Alain has been with the AGO for over three years, joining us in 2017 as the Staff Relations Specialist, before moving into the Manager, People Relations role in 2018. Alain joined the AGO because of his expertise in labour relations, but has quickly become a trusted advisor and leader to colleagues across the gallery because of his belief in our mission, institutional mindset and exceptional people skills.

Alain will join Leadership Team and will report directly to me. Erin Prendergast will also meet regularly with Alain and the People Managers for ongoing support.  We will be hiring to fill the vacant role in People Relations as it is a critical position for the AGO.

Reporting to Alain will be:

• Vijay Patel, Manager, Safety & Wellness
• Holly Procktor, Coordinator, Volunteers
• Nathalie Sato, Manager, Talent
• Shane Ward,  Manager, Total Rewards
• Hannah Weisdorf, Executive Coordinator, People & Exhibitions &Collections

Please join me in congratulating Alain on his new role. 

Sincerely,

Stephan

Thanks to volunteer Shelagh Barrington for passing along this link. Fellow textile lovers, there are some great free talks this week; registration details via Zoom, below – Holly

Wednesday, October 21, 10 a.m.–1 p.m.
Thursday, October 22, 1–4 p.m.

To commemorate the donation of the Cotsen Textile Traces Study Collection and the creation of the new Cotsen Textile Traces Study Center, join us for a two-day roundtable with distinguished textile artists, conservators, and scholars from around the world. Beginning with an introduction to Lloyd Cotsen’s collecting and an overview of the collection and study center, the roundtable will feature five one-hour panels highlighting textiles from five continents, including an Indian robe for Indonesia, a Kuba hat, and Captain Cook’s sample book of tapa cloth. This inaugural roundtable seeks to encourage textile research, facilitate critical discussion, support cultural diversity, and preserve cultural heritage by making direct connections between collection objects and current research and art-making.

Keep reading to see the list of sessions and speakers, or download the complete schedule (PDF).

About the Collection

The Cotsen Textile Traces Study Collection represents a lifetime of collecting by business leader and philanthropist Lloyd Cotsen (1929–2017). Comprised of nearly 4,000 fragments from all over the world, the collection offers insights into human creativity from antiquity to the present. Cornerstones of the collection include fragments from Japan, China, pre-Columbian Peru, and 16th- to 18th-century Europe. The entire collection is available online.

Wednesday, October 21

Panel 1: 10–11 a.m.
Introducing the Cotsen Textile Traces Study Collection and Center 
Marie-Eve Celio-Scheurer, academic coordinator, Cotsen Textile Traces Study Center
Lyssa Stapleton, curator, Cotsen Collection in Los Angeles
John Wetenhall, director, George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum

Panel 2: 11 a.m.–12 p.m.
Indian Block-Printing Traditions
Ruth Barnes, curator, Yale University Art Gallery
Ruchira Ghose, former director, National Crafts Museum in New Delhi
Mushtak Khan, former deputy director, National Crafts Museum in New Delhi

Panel 3: 12–1 p.m.
Connecting Fragments: Silk Conservation
Maria Fusco, chief conservator, George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum
Hélène Dubuis, conservator, Abbeg Stiftung Museum in Riggisberg

Thursday, October 22

Panel 4: 1–2 p.m. 
Kuba’s Living Traditions 
Kevin Tervala, curator of African art, Baltimore Museum of Art
Vanessa Drake Moraga, independent scholar and curator
Mireielle Asia Nyembo, artist

Panel 5: 2–3 p.m.
Weaving and Dyeing in South America and Mesoamerica 
Jim Bassler, artist
Elena Phipps, independent scholar
Alejandro de Ávila Blomberg, director, Jardín Etnobotánico de Oaxaca and Museo Textil de Oaxaca

Panel 6: 3–4 p.m.
The Sample Book of Captain Cook and Tapa Cloth Today
Adrienne Kaeppler, curator of Oceanic Ethnology, Smithsonian Institution
Kamalu de Preez, ethnology assistant collections manager, Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum in Honolulu

How to Participate

To join us for the roundtable, please register early to reserve your space. Once you have registered, we will email you links and details for joining each day of the roundtable on Zoom. We will also email registered participants a full program with a detailed schedule, abstracts, and bios.

Hello Everybody,

I know there was some confusion with the recent tightening of restrictions by the Ontario Government, so I wanted to reiterate that the gallery is indeed open! These restrictions affect the Bistro which is now just offering takeout (with frozen meals, tea service and curated food options available on the go).

With the rapidly approaching closures of Diane Arbus, Photographs: 1957-1971 and Illusions: The Art of Magic, we recommend that you see these exhibits within the next two weeks to avoid disappointment. As we all know, people generally leave things to the last minute which will be exasperated by our drastically lowered capacity to allow for physical distancing. To book tickets, please reach out to our Contact Centre which is open from Wednesday to Friday from 9-5pm and Saturday and Sunday from 10-3pm at 416-979-6648. Remember you will need to book a specific date and time as part of our Covid-19 safety measures.

Finally, with the cooling temperatures and daylight savings inching closer, we have arrived at one of the best times of the year – Halloween! To get into the “spirit” (see what I did there!) I’m sharing some articles that highlight our “creepiest works”  here and here. And while I am at it, enjoy the bottom picture which I took yesterday of a super festive house in my neighbourhood! Enjoy!

Read on!

Newly Announced Virtual School Programs

With Covid-19 changing the landscape of how we offer school programing, the AGO launched a new initiative to encourage art anywhere, at school or at home. The new live art education program, happens daily, Monday to Friday via Zoom and it completely free of charge! Programing offered is tailored specifically for JK to Grade 3, another for Grades 4 to and another for Grades 9 to 12. Each program is 30 minutes, and has an element of wellness and art woven into the session, as well as a small creative exercise and includes highlights from the collection. Feel free to share this program with anyone you think may may find this useful! You can register for the programing here.

Wychwood Park and it’s Pioneering Female Artists

Wychwood Park, a heritage neighbourhood in Toronto, was at one time a revered arts colony. In the late 1800s, numerous artists were drawn to the neighbourhood – home to luscious trees, a ravine and Taddle creek – to live and work. It was also home to two pioneering women artists, Mary Hiester Reid and Mary Wrinch which are both featured in two exciting new exhibits, Mary Wrinch: Painted from Life and The Open Door: Mary Hiester Reid and Hellen McNicoll . The above painting by Mary Hiester Reid, At Twilight, Wynchwood Park  is a beautiful rendering of this mysterious and private neighbourhood (which is very much worth an adventure if you have never been!). Make sure to check out these two short and delightful videos with assistant curator of Canadian Art, Renée van der Avoird and Fredrik S. Eaton Curator, Canadian Art, Georgiana Uhlyarik as they discuss the significance of the two Wychwood artists including their contributions to the AGO Collection here and here.

Closing soon: Photography, 1920s to 1940s: Women in Focus

Closing Soon

Photography, 1920s to 1940s: Women in Focus [Part II] is closing October 18th in gallery 128 

Eugene Haanel Cassidy: Plant Forms is closing October 18th in gallery 129

British Watercolours from J.M.W. Turner to Beatrix Potter is closing October 25th in gallery 127

Diane Arbus, Photographs: 1956-1971 is closing November 8th in Zacks Pavillion

Illusions: The Art of Magic is closing November 8th in Zacks Pavillion

Opening Soon

Documents, 1960s – 1970s opening October 31st in gallery 128

Dawoud Bey, John Edmonds, Wardell Milan opening October 31st in gallery 129

Recently Announced

Studio 54: Night Magic opening December 26th in Zacks Pavillion

Be well and stay healthy,

Christine, Trish and Nicole