Hello everyone,

This week has been dynamic.

On Monday, a small group of leadership team members, trustees and I visited Woodland Cultural Centre to continue our discussions and partnership with Six Nations of the Grand River. We toured the newly unveiled Interpretive Historic Site in the former Mohawk Institute Residential School. I highly encourage you to visit. It is deeply moving and a difficult part of our history.

On Wednesday night, we hosted a Growing the AGO Collection event for a large group of AGO supporters. These events are an opportunity for our Curatorial team to announce and educate on recent acquisitions in their curatorial areas. 

On Thursday, we announced the Rapp gift of more than 450 artworks by 203 artists to the public. This is a very special gift by very special people, Carol and Morton Rapp, and the press release has received the attention it deserves. The name might be familiar as there is a Rapp Gallery on the 5th Floor, and there will be another in the Dani Reiss Modern and Contemporary Gallery. Their love of the AGO was profound.

This weekend I travel to Seoul with members of our International Art Circle. I look forward to seeing you all around the Gallery, soon.

Take care,

Stephan

Hello everyone,

A unique exhibition curated with input from over 80 artists, collectors, donors, curators, community leaders, and scholars opens to Members today. Collective Visions is a celebration of our growing photography collection which now accounts for approximately 70,000 of the AGO’s 120,000 artworks. It took a community to build both the collection and the exhibition that celebrates it, and I am grateful to the many contributors to the Photography department’s success. I hope you grab an Exhibition Guide on your way into the exhibition to experience it fully. Sophie Hackett and her team did a great job.

Which artwork from our photography collection would you have selected for this exhibition?

Take care,

Stephan

Reimagining a Baroque artwork at the AGO 

Fracture (2024) by Jesse Mockrin is a reimagination of Nicolas Tournier’s The Judgement of Solomon (c.1625), a Baroque painting also on view at the Gallery. Fracture marks the first work by Mockrin acquired by the AGO. Fracture is on view outside the main exhibition space in the E.R. Wood Gallery (121).     

Mockrin re-envisions works by European Old Masters through a radical, contemporary feminist lens. Her approach often involves cropping, fragmenting, and recombining the portrayal of familiar historical figures and stories to reveal the unsettling and uncanny dramas buried in the art historical canon. 

For this exhibition, Mockrin created 17 new large-scale paintings based on Baroque works at the AGO. To create Fracture (above), Mockrin spent two research visits to the AGO closely studying The Judgement of Solomon alongside other seventeenth-century paintings of the same subject. The biblical tale recounts the arrival of two mothers at the court of King Solomon, with a dead and living newborn between them. The women petition Solomon, both claiming the living newborn is theirs. Solomon suggests the newborn should be cut in half, and one of the women quickly withdraws her claim on the infant. Solomon rules that this woman, who puts the well-being of the baby before her happiness, must be the true mother.  

Nicolas Tournier. The Judgement of Solomon, c. 1625. Oil on canvas, Overall: 156 x 209 cm. On loan from a private collection. Photo © AGO.

Many of Mockrin’s works in Echo examine how gender-based violence is at the core of biblical and mythological stories and their depictions. This is exemplified in Fracture, where Mockrin frames her depiction of this tale to focus on the threat of violence towards the vulnerable mothers. Mockrin omits both the newborns and Solomon—the only suggestion of the king’s presence is an ominous hand floating in the top-right corner. While Fracture shifts focus to the two mothers, it maintains a dense web of gestures and gazes.  

Mockrin shares in the exhibition catalogue: “I like revisiting these stories and the way they’ve been depicted because I think a lot of narrative details are lost on the general public today. And when I was making these paintings, I was really interested in the experience of the two women. So, I cropped parts of the composition and removed the men’s faces. The woman who lost her baby and is claiming another woman’s baby is suffering this horrific loss. Why doesn’t this story—that is about celebrating male wisdom—acknowledge that it’s at the expense of women’s suffering?” 

Unlike the works of European Old Masters, Mockrin chooses to omit a background setting in Fracture. By rejecting background details, Mockrin draws the viewer’s attention solely towards what is occurring in the scene before them. These bare backgrounds, alongside Mockrin’s unique visual language of uncanny flatness, also place these historical stories within a contemporary setting, a reminder that these systems of violence persist into the present.  

Echo is curated by Adam Harris Levine, the AGO’s Associate Curator of European Art. Learn more about Mockrin’s process this coming week in our Curator’s Talk organized exclusive for AGO volunteers. Join us on Wednesday October 29, at 6pm in-gallery. No need to register, just drop-in! We hope to see you there!

Hello everyone,

It is the Friday before the Thanksgiving long weekend. It is a good moment to reflect on what we are grateful for. For me, sometimes it is a small thing – like a bright red leaf that falls from a tree. Other times it is about looking forward to seeing friends and/or family. One thing I am particularly grateful for is the dedication of the AGO staff and volunteers. Some of you will be welcoming visitors over the long weekend – to you a special thank you.

There is a small group of staff who have worked at the AGO so long that it is nothing short of humbling. There are seniority lists in the D Corridor (by the People department) which I encourage you to check out. If you take the years served by Maria Ansari, Roman Baran, Tiffany Chau, Terry Cheung, Wendy Hebditch, Karin Hollesen, Ruth Jones, Dale Mahar, Mike Ronco, and David Thai alone, it adds up to over 381 years!

Take care,

Stephan

Hello Everyone,

I hope you are enjoying the glorious weather!

In the last years, the AGO has invested in new systems like Tessitura to help streamline processes, create efficiencies, and help gather and secure data. We have recently undergone another system upgrade with the launch of Workday – our new Finance and HR system. This was a multi-department effort that required major contributions from IT, Finance, and HR. Thank you to those who have been working hard on this launch, and to everyone for adapting to our new technology.

An important and beautiful tribute to David Blackwood’s printmaking legacy, David Blackwood: Myth & Legend, opens next Wednesday. The AGO is home to Blackwood’s archives, and we hold the world’s largest collection of his work. While the icy imagery of his work is in stark contrast to our current reality, let this be a gentle reminder of the beauty of winter.

Take care,

Stephan

P.s. The new Impact Report for 2024-2025 celebrates the great work that you all do and is available to view here.

We are saddened to share the news that long time AGO volunteer, Gallery Guide Jean Crawford, recently passed away.

Here at the Gallery, she will be remembered here for her liveliness and sense of verve. When I first started at the Gallery, I recall she was deeply involved in the National Docent Symposium as a Co-chair, part of a really formidable group of women who got things done! Not surprising given Jean’s impressive history as a leader in public relations and philanthropy. As a volunteer guide, I recall she loved research and enjoyed “floating”- always happy to strike up a conversation with enthusiasm and never shy. A joy to be around.

Shares former Gallery Guide Coordinator, Melissa Smith: I remember Jean as unfailingly caring, thoughtful and deeply knowledgable—someone who listened closely, asked wise questions, and made people feel seen. She was wonderfully erudite; conversations with her opened doors, whether we were talking galleries, books, or the small details that bring a work to life. Jean’s generosity—of time, attention, and spirit—was matched only by her passion for arts and culture. She championed artists and ideas with warmth and conviction, and she made every space she entered more welcoming and alive.

We are sharing her obituary, here:

CRAWFORD, JEAN ANN (nee COOPER) In Loving Memory January 28, 1944 September 13, 2025

Jean passed peacefully, with family and friends by her side, after a long battle with Parkinson’s on September 13, 2025, at Humber River Hospital.

She is survived by her children, Dan Crawford (Lauren Hunter) and Melissa Chandler (nee Crawford) (Matthew Chandler); and her grandchildren, Aidan Chandler, Ethan Chandler, and Felix Crawford. She is survived by her siblings, Ed Cooper and Betty Compeer; and was loved dearly by her beloved niece, Catherine Lyle; and cousin, Joanne Lundy. Jean was predeceased by her parents, Edgar and Grace Cooper.

Jean will be remembered as a loving mother, grandmother and aunt, an exceptional friend and mentor to many, a strong woman with a fierce eye for art, design, and appreciation for the fine arts. The family would like to express deep thanks to all of Jean’s friends who have loved and cared for her, the staff at Humber Heights Retirement Village, Humber River Hospital and the team at Meliora Care for their compassion and kindness. A private service will be held by the family, with a larger celebration of life to be planned. Details to be confirmed.

Condolences can be sent to: [email protected] In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to the Art Gallery of Ontario or Parkinson Society Canada.

Hello Everyone,

Last night we hosted over 1000 guests for Art Bash, our annual fundraising gala, and closed out our 125^th birthday celebrations. A huge thank you to all of the departments that worked together to make the event a success. I am proud to share that we raised over $1.4M in support of the AGO – a new record for Art Bash. This money goes straight to operations (a.k.a. staff salaries, utilities, and the like).

The event gathered a remarkable cross-section of our community – from families who have supported the growth and vibrancy of Toronto’s cultural landscape for over a century, to visionary donors investing in the future of the AGO through the Dani Reiss Modern and Contemporary Gallery (DRMCG) campaign. We were honoured to be joined by so many who champion the arts through philanthropy, artistic practice, and community engagement. 

On Tuesday, we acknowledge National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day. Earlier today, Robert Durocher, Chief, Education & Programming, shared an important message that offers resources and encourages us to take time to reflect on the significance of this day. I want to suggest a space for that reflection. Faye HeavyShield: Issokawo’taan opened earlier this month and includes a work titled adrift, 2025. The mobile of acetate is most beautiful and in a constant state of change as it reacts to sun and air. It certainly invites you to linger and reflect.

Take care,

Stephan

A Message from Robert Durocher, Richard and Elizabeth Currie Chief, Education and Programming 

September 30 marks Orange Shirt Day and National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. This day honours the experiences of Residential School Survivors and the children who never made it home, as well as their families and communities. This year, September 30 falls on Tuesday of next week.   

I encourage you to take time to reflect on the significance of this day. You may choose to spend time with the work of the First Nations, Métis and Inuit artists on view in our galleries, attend local events, or seek out additional educational resources. It’s important that we all engage with the significance of this day as Treaty People on Indigenous land.  

One suggestion is to attend the Indigenous Legacy Gathering on September 29 and 30. Located a short distance from the AGO, the Toronto Council Fire Native Cultural Centre is hosting this two-day event at Nathan Phillips Square. From traditional drumming to live performances, ceremonies, community connections and dancing, both days celebrate the diversity and vibrancy of Indigenous cultures. The full schedule of events is available at councilfire.ca. 

The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation is hosting a series of Lunch and Learn webinars, each focused on unpacking different aspects of the residential school system. There are six webinars in total intended for adult viewers, which are recorded and available to stream here.  

Here is a link to a series of podcasts related to the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

It is important to remember that we need to continue to learn Truths so that we can enact reconciliation in authentic and sincere ways. I always speak about the importance of relationships – relationships to land, and relationships with each other based on reciprocity, care, and love. Please connect with me at any time if you have any questions or would like to talk. 

In gratitude and hope, 

Robert 

Hello Everyone,

Jesse Mockrin: Echo opened to Members on September 10 and has been met with nothing but praise since. Curated by Adam Harris Levine, Associate Curator of European Art, the show is Mockrin’s first solo museum exhibition and inspired by Baroque paintings, sculptures, and drawings at the AGO. It is a very beautiful exhibition. I hope you spend some time with it. 

Art Bash!, our annual gala fundraiser, is quickly upcoming next Thursday and this year the event marks the end of our AGO 125 celebrations. I got word this morning that our Development team has already surpassed their fundraising goal. This is before party tickets have sold out. A remarkable achievement! I want to thank you all in advance for coming together to make the event unforgettable for our guests.

On the list of AGO milestones this year is the Library & Archives celebration of 50 years. Currently stewarded by Al Stanton-Hagan, the AGO Archives includes documentation of the Gallery’s building, exhibitions, programs, and staff over our 125 years. The Library & Archives is hosting an informal drop-in gathering next Friday September 26, from 4-6pm to toast the occasion, and all staff & volunteers are invited to join.

Take care,

Stephan

Hello friends and lovers of AGO history! 

This fall, the Library & Archives team is celebrating a major milestone. September 2025 marks 50 years since the AGO’s records were archived and made available to staff and the public.  

Stewarded by Al Stanton-Hagan, AGO Archivist, the AGO Archives includes documentation of the Gallery’s exhibitions, building, programs, and staff over its 125 years of operation. 

Come help the Library & Archives team in toasting to this legacy of archival care with an informal staff & volunteer drop-in party:

• Friday, September 26, from 4 pm to 6 pm

We’ll have light refreshments, a slideshow of highlights from the Gallery’s archives, and brief remarks at 5 pm.  Hope to see you there!

Questions? Please reach out to [email protected]