The Monarch Butterfly Farewell Party
Celebrate the end of summer and the departing Monarch butterflies with a farewell parade for our favourite pollinators! Learn about how Monarchs travel and their varied habitats, create your own colourful butterfly, and show it off during the farewell parade featuring songs, dancing, and good cheer with Goodtimes Family Band.
Art Activities and Workshops
Sunday,
August 20, 2023
Art activities and workshops from 11 am to 4 pm
Performance by The Goodtimes Family Band
at 2 pm
Special Family Sunday Kids Menu and Grab and Go options available at Cabin.
FREE ADMISSION on Family Sundays
Please note that parking fees ($7) are still in effect
Fluttering Butterfly | Drop-in Family Art Workshop
Time: 11 am to 4 pm
Location: Pine Cottage
All Ages
While not all butterflies travel as far as the Monarch, this workshop will celebrate the many colours, shapes and sizes found in these friendly insects. Join educator and artist Olivia Wallace to create your own vibrant butterfly that can fly at our joyful Farewell Parade!
Our Friendly Monarch Butterfly
Time: 11 am to 4 pm
All Ages
On Saturday, August 20, drop in at the Minokamik Garden and learn about the majestic Monarch butterfly! Participants will discover how a caterpillar’s diet ensures the entire species’ survival, how caterpillars transform into butterflies, and how they alter their biology to prepare for long migrations. You’ll have the opportunity to participate in a fun interactive Monarch activity! This August 20, come out and #FeelTheFlutter!
Migration Stories | Storytelling Circle
Time: 11:15 am, 12:15 pm and 1:15 pm
Location: Starting in the Grand Hall
All Ages
There’s nothing like travel for a change of scenery, perspective, and creative renewal, but what about those who split their homes between different streets, cities, or even countries? In these storytelling circles, learn about those artists who, like Monarch butterflies, call more than one place “home.”
Spotlight Tour: Outdoors at the McMichael
Time: 12:30 and 2 pm
All Ages
On this outdoor tour, enjoy a walk through the grounds and learn about the McMichael’s outdoor artwork installations and the diverse plants and animals of the Humber River Valley. Visit the historic Tom Thomson Shack and and Artists’ Cemetery, then participate in a discussion of the Gallery’s engagement with outdoor art and evolving relationship with the natural landscape.
McMichael Highlights Tour
Time: 12:30 to 1:30 pm, and 2 to 3 pm
Location: Starting in the Grand Hall
All Ages
This in-person guided tour of the McMichael’s current exhibitions focuses on the core components of the Gallery’s collection, including paintings by the Group of Seven and their contemporaries, Inuit and Indigenous art, as well as more contemporary Canadian artists working in a variety of mediums.
Performances
Monarch Farewell Parade with The Goodtimes Family Band
Time: 2 to 3:30 pm
Location: Main Entrance Courtyard (inclement weather – Gallery 8)
All Ages
Fly your handmade butterfly or simply join in the Monarch Farewell Parade which will weave through the gallery grounds with music and dancing led by the Toronto-based Goodtimes Family Band. This joyful procession will conclude with an energetic street party-style performance as we say goodbye to the Monarchs and send them off in style.
