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Video: Wangechi Mutu, This You Call Civilization?
March 5th, 2010
Wangechi Mutu’s work boldly explores the contradictions of female and cultural identity, drawing the viewer into conversations about beauty, consumerism, colonialism, race, and gender. Her representations of the human form are disturbing and transfixing, at once utterly complex and strikingly direct.
Keep On Tutting
March 5th, 2010
Early last Sunday morning, February 28, more than 100 eager "Tutters" came to the AGO to try setting a new Guinness World Record for the most people Tutting continuously for five minutes.
Professional dance artist Mark Cabuena from the Toronto dance crews Grand Illusion and For the Funk of It led 107 participants of all ages in a choreographed routine. All participants received a free ticket to the AGO and to see the King Tut exhibition. They were also entered in a draw to win a King Tut weekend in Toronto! Karen C. from Toronto was the lucky winner of a night for two at the Westin Harbour Castle, two VIP tickets to see King Tut, and $500 in shopping certificates courtesy of Scarborough Town Centre.
"The success of this event was measured by the overwhelming support of the hip hop community and their enthusiastic response," said Sue Boyle, coordinator, promotions and tourism, and organizer of the event. "It was a huge hit and one step closer to creating a positive relationship with a new audience."
Over 13,600 people have watched our Tutting video on YouTube, and the AGO has received numerous emails from local youth voicing their positive response to this initiative.
We are waiting to see if we set a record. Stay tuned and keep Tutting.
Sunday Concert: Tenor Michael Ciufo
March 5th, 2010
The AGO is partnering with the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) to host Sunday afternoon concerts in Walker Court. Talented RCM students present weekly performances right through spring 2010.
This week's concert features tenor Michael Ciufo, with pianist David Eliakis.
Canadian tenor Michael Ciufo is quickly becoming known for his stage presence, charisma, and gorgeous voice. His opera experience includes Mozart’s "The Marriage of Figaro", the Canadian premiere of Respighi’s "The Sleeping Beauty", and Handel’s "Joshua" with the Orpheus Choir of Toronto, and much more. Michael is a third year Sidgwick Scholar with the Orpheus Choir of Toronto, and is currently enrolled in the Artist Diploma Program at the Glenn Gould School studying voice.
Sunday concerts are held in Walker Court from 1:30 to 2:15 pm, and are free with admission.
Rembrandt/Freud: Etchings from Life Videos
March 4th, 2010
Five experts share personal insights about the etchings of Rembrandt and Lucian Freud. Featuring artists David Blackwood, Murray Laufer and Libby Hague; Globe and Mail writer Ian Brown; and corporate curator and AGO volunteer Ed Phillips.
Welcome to the Grange Prize 2010!
March 3rd, 2010
We have made a couple of changes in our program this year, most notably we will be announcing the winner in November 2010. The $50,000 is given to the artist who receives the highest number of votes so check back often for updates and of course the announcement of the shortlist in May 2010 and the launch of the voting in September!
In the meantime, we will be posting semi regularly about some of the unique aspects of the prize, like the artist residencies. Each year, the Grange Prize provides the nominees with an opportunity to complete a residency in the partner country during the voting period. Last year Lynne Cohen travelled to Cancun, Marco Cruz and Federico Gama spent two weeks in Toronto and Jin Me Yoon spent 12 days in Mexico City. Over the next couple of months we will be sharing some of their stories and giving you some sneak peeks at the work they made while on their residencies.
Tomorrow: Meet the artist Giuseppe Penone
March 2nd, 2010
Giuseppe Penone will be talking about his work this Wednesday, March 3 at 7 p.m. in Baillie Court. Here he is seen working on Versailles Cedar, 2000-2003 currently installed in Galleria Italia. Penone arrives at these forms by carving the tree trunk leaving the knots in place until they emerge as limbs, revealing the sapling within. Click here for tickets.
AGO Art Rental + Sales Gallery presents MERGE
March 2nd, 2010
March 19 – April 17
Following the overwhelming success of Merge in 2008, the AGO Art Rental + Sales Gallery will be hosting its second Merge exhibition showcasing emerging artists. AGO Art Rental +Sales Gallery has been responsible for giving many of Toronto’s artists their first break. This year’s exhibition will feature works by Nicole Katsuras, Jennifer Long, Eamon Mac Mahon, Adam Makarenko, Amy Shackleton and Janna Watson. In addition, the exhibition will see the debut of a new lecture series Saturday ArtSpeak that will showcase the rising stars in the art market, from those who know!
Opening Reception: 481 University Avenue, Ground Floor
Friday, March 19, 6 – 9 pm. Artists in attendance.
Speaking on Merge Lecture: Saturday, March 20, 1 – 1:30 pm
AGO Celebrates Black History Month
February 25th, 2010
Chris Bosh speaks the students at the AGO. Photos courtesy AGO photographer Dean Thomlinson.
The AGO is working with its community partners to celebrate Black History Month, an annual remembrance of people and events in the history of the African diaspora.
This past Monday, the AGO hosted members of the Toronto Raptors with 40 young students from Toronto at-risk communities for the NBA’s Read to Achieve program. Our director Matthew Teitelbaum introduced the students to the AGO at this educational outreach initiative, which is aimed at helping young people develop a life-long love for reading.
This evening, the AGO is working with community artist Janine Carrington to present a collage artmaking activity at University Settlement’s Black History Month event, based on the theme "Remember the past, Seize the present, Embrace the future". All are welcome at this event, which will take place at University Settlement auditorium from 5 to 8 pm. For more information about University Settlement please visit www.usrc.ca
And this Saturday, February 27, the AGO is partnering with Kids Up Front Foundation to provide a free group visit for 30 dads and kids from the Black Daddies Club. Kids Up Front is a charitable organization that provides access to arts, culture, sport and recreation for children who otherwise do not have the opportunity. The Black Daddies Club was founded in 2007 by Brandon Hay in response to the lack of forums and spaces for Black men to discuss parenting issues as well as the issues facing the Black Community as a whole. More information at available at Kids Up Front and at Black Daddies Club.
Malaria, not murder felled King Tut
February 19th, 2010
It’s a study in contrasts.
Visitors to the AGO’s exhibition, King Tut: The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs continue to marvel at the grand scale of Tutankhamun’s accoutrement – from golden jewellery to the elegant coffinette that held one of his internal organs.
Yet just a few months into Canada’s latest case of Tutmania, new research shows that the Golden King actually had physical ailments on an equally grand scale. As the Toronto Star’s Joe Hall reported, “King Tut likely limped through life and died a weary death from malaria and bone ailments.”
Check out the Star’s coverage of new research on Tut’s 3,300 year-old skeleton and DNA as reported in the Feb. 17 edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Then visit the AGO’s exhibition (on through April 18) and experience the boy king in a new and unexpected light.
David’s Notes: Where Are All The Women?
February 16th, 2010
Where are all the women?
The Art Gallery of Ontario’s European collection has only a handful of works by women created prior to 1900. Here’s why:
Before the 1870s, women were discouraged from studying art. For many years, Mary Alabaster’s mother prevented her from pursuing her love of art.
Until recently, the Art Gallery of Ontario didn’t acknowledge the role women have played in the making of art over the last 400 years. Fortunately, times have changed. Women are well represented in the Gallery’s contemporary collection.
Mary Ann Rebecca Alabaster
(British, 1805-1880)
The Artist’s Painting-Room
1830
oil on canvas
84.5 x 70.4 cm
Art Gallery of Ontario,
Promised gift from Carol and Morton Rapp.
© 2009 Art Gallery of Ontario
Featured Content
AGO Podcasts
Features recordings of AGO events, discussion with artists, analysis of works and exhibitions, and original material created exclusively for this podcast. Subscribe today!
Tut With Us!
The King Tut exhibition makes us want to get up and dance. But not just any dance ... we want to Tut! And we want you to join us!
The Anubis Photo Challenge
Dress the Anubis for a chance to win 2 tickets to King Tut! Use your favourite photo editing software to give Anubis some clothes.
King Tut: Memories of '79
AGO members and friends everywhere to share their memories of the 1979 King Tut exhibition.
What's On at the AGO
A playlist highlighting recent and upcoming events at the Gallery.
Art, Artists and Ideas
A playlist featuring artists, curators and other encounters with Art.
King Tut Podcast
Discover objects from King Tut, the Golden King and Great Pharaoh with David Silverman, Curator of the exhibition
Edward Steichen Exhibition Microsite
This online exhibition features galleries of high-quality images, audio guides, and in-depth analysis.
Image: Actress Joan Bennett, 1928 (detail). Gelatin silver print. Courtesy Condé Nast Archive, New York. © 1928 Condé Nast Publications.
Beautiful Fictions Audio Tour
See the late 1960s to the present through the lens of 60 Canadian and international photographers. Bring this podcast along on your next AGO visit!
Image: Axel Hutte, Audubon Swamp, 2005, chromogenic print. © Axel Hutte and Schirmer/Mosel, 2009
The Thomson Collection of Ship Models Audio Tour
Join Simon Stephens, curator at the National Maritime Museum in London, England, as he guides listeners through the world of British ship models spanning 350 years.
Image: Troop Landing Craft, Georgian Model; made in Great Britain; around 1755 - 1760; wood, painted and varnished; metal (including iron and copper), painted; 16.0 x 36.0 x 42.0 cm; The Thomson Collection © Art Gallery of Ontario
Director's Highlights Audio Tour
Join Matthew Teitelbaum as he talks about the art and architecture that he finds the most interesting and engaging.
Image: AGO Photographer Sean Weaver © 2008 Art Gallery of Ontario
Collection X: Indian Church
This online exhibition examines the Indian Church as a symbol for the rapid encroachment of Western modernity on First Nations.
Image: Arthur Renwick, Canadian, born 1965, Nlaka'pamux BC (left), Git'ksan BC (right), 2005, archival inkjet print, edition 1/5, Collection of the artist, courtesy of Leo Kamen Gallery © 2007 Arthur Renwick
Collection X: Come Away With Me: Japan, China and Hong Kong, 1890s
Through this selection of images, you will encounter a typical travel album of its day, at a particular moment of cultural upheaval and exchange.
Unknown photographer (active China, 1890s), From the album Views of Japan, China and Hong Kong, 1870s–1890s, albumen print, 21.3 x 26.5 cm, [2007/275.46], Art Gallery of Ontario, Gift of Neil B. Cole, 2007, © 2009 Art Gallery of Ontario
Collection X: Come Away With Me: European Travels
This exhibition explores a personal travel album, which charts a trip through several European cities during the spring and summer of 1936.
German photographer, Album: European Travels (detail), around 1936, 16 gelatin silver prints in a 48-page cloth- and paper-bound album, album: 12.7 x 15.8 x 2.3 cm; prints: 8.8 x 11.8 cm, [103545.a03], Art Gallery of Ontario, Gift of David Moore and Ross Winter / Camera Lucida, 2007 © 2009 Art Gallery of Ontario
Collection X: The Art of Collection Building
This exhibition explores the evolution of the print and drawing collection through the personalities, artworks and stories that make it unique.
Image: François Boucher (French, 1703 - 1770), Young Country Girl Dancing (Detail), c1765 - 70, black, red and white chalks and stump on buff laid paper, 46.2 x 29.2 cm. Art Gallery of Ontario, Purchased as a gift of The Salamander Foundation and the Marvin Gelber Fund with a generous grant from the Department of canadian heritage on the recommendation of the canadian Cultural property Export review Board under the terms of the Cultural property Export and Import Act, 1998 © 2009 Art Gallery of Ontario
Slideshow: Isaak Massa - A Man of the World
Isaak Massa ( 1586–1643) was a self-made businessman, diplomat, map-maker and author from the Netherlands. Massa commissioned three portraits from Frans Hals, who was a close friend.
Slideshow: Childhood to Old Age
Could this young girl of four already be engaged? Her ring, the little statue (symbol of fertility), the carnations, the fan and the peacock (symbol of Juno, goddess of child- birth) all refer to love and marriage.
Recent comments on Sunday Concert: Pianist Connie Kim-Sheng:
“I have seen your photo on the web, and your piano performances; wish you the very best. Your Mom and Brother must be really proud of you. My Best Wishes for continued success. My Regards, Bill Davisson”
— Bill Davisson
“Is there some video of Connie performing solo?”
— Robert Smith
Recent comments on Memories of King Tut: “I saw this when…”:
“Went with grade 4 class in 1979, and will be going this month. Still have my souvenir t-shirt, obviously it doesn’t fit. Oh well! Fun for show and tell.”
— Anne Waller
Recent comments on Memories of King Tut: Nieces and Nephews:
“The over all experience of visiting this exhibit was very poor. The exhibits themselves are excellent but the staging of the exhibit and the flow of traffic was atrocious. Right from the start it is ill conceived. 50 or so attendees crammed together listening to a superfluous video preamble by Harrison Ford simply served to create a bottle neck wave of jostling viewers and created an atmosphere akin to P. T. Barnum’s museum of oddities. Allowing...”
— George Countryman
“I was at the exhibit 30 years ago when I was only 8 and I still remember it vividly. So now I am bringing my 3 children to see it so they can have a memory that will last a lifetime.”
— Frank Dos Santos