Ian Dejardin, Executive Director of the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, is delving deep into the gallery’s vaults to make a very personal selection of works of art for his first curated show since taking the reins of the gallery. Dejardin promises many classic favourites, but also some that have been rarely seen, and some that might surprise even an audience familiar with Canadian art. This exhibition will showcase the beauty, diversity, and artistry of the art of Canada.

This exhibition will document an artistic career that spanned the first half of the 20th century, bringing together more than ninety works in oil and watercolour, never-before-exhibited photographs and drawings by the artist, and memorabilia collected by Milne during his time in Europe as an official war artist.

This exhibition will focus on Stephen Andrews’ works responding to images of war and prisoners of war, exploring the way in which we experience such imagery through the media. Andrews’ works, which are largely pencil crayon on paper, subtly interpret the omissions and misinterpretations of war imagery, with many images culled from unofficial soldiers’ blogs and other online platforms.

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, the gallery’s founders, Robert and Signe McMichael, celebrated Christmas with a welcoming spirit, inviting neighbours into their home to enjoy their collection of Canadian art. With its log-and-stone architecture construction and panoramic views of the snow-covered forest, the McMichaels’ home was truly a place of special Christmas cheer; so-much-so that Signe McMichael was once quoted in an article, “This house was made for Christmas.”

Carl Beam: Time Traveller features a selection of works on paper by Ojibwe artist Carl Beam (1943-2005) drawn from the McMichael's permanent collection. Beam's combined-use of family photographs, images from archival sources and news media suggests the interplay of past and present in his complex experience of twentieth century life, placing the condition of Indigenous peoples within a global context.

This retrospective exhibition highlights the key role of artist Françoise Sullivan in the history of modern and contemporary art in Québec. The exhibition, which includes over 50 works of art, will feature a diverse mix of painting, sculpture, video, costume and archival materials.

Rita Letendre turned 90 this fall, and she remains one of the leading abstract artists in Canada, and a legendary icon for women artists. She is best known for her hard-edge abstract works from the 60s and 70s, some of which were presented as epic wall murals in public locations in Toronto.

Marie-Claire Blais (b. 1974, Lévis) is a leading light of contemporary art in Montreal, yet until now her work has not been presented in a major Canadian museum. Blais extends the language of abstraction into the contemporary movement, painting on canvas and then cutting, shredding and unraveling the painting surface to produce subtle works that hover between sculpture and painting.

Louie Palu’s project provides a window onto the evolving perceived state of the militarization in the North American Arctic, documenting the vestigial legacies of the Cold War and the increased military presence in the north today.

The McMichael Canadian Art Collection is pleased to present a retrospective of over 80 drawings and ephemera by the late Itee Pootoogook (1951 – 2014) as part of an ongoing analysis of the careers of contemporary Inuit trailblazers.

This exhibition of new textile works by Baker Lake artist Janet Nungnik (b.1954) was produced over a period of more than 15 years. Nungnik’s embroidered and appliqued images tell her life story and that of her people, the Padlermiut, a small group of inland dwelling Inuit whose traditional territory lay to the south of Baker Lake, Nunavut.

One of Canada’s most beloved folk artists, Maud Lewis (1903 - 1970) was famous in her lifetime for her brightly coloured and endearing paintings of rural Nova Scotia.

At its heart, the exhibition features Houle’s Sandy Bay Residential School Series, 2009, a suite of 24 oilstick drawings made by the artist as he recollected these childhood terrors.

Into the Light: Lionel LeMoine FitzGerald is a comprehensive examination of the accomplishments and legacy of the Winnipeg artist Lionel LeMoine FitzGerald (1890–1956), the last member to join the Group of Seven in 1932.

Among the great treasures of the McMichael Canadian Art Collection is a group of fifty-four jewel-like miniatures by the artist Clarence Gagnon.

In 2020, we will be celebrating the achievement of the Group of Seven on the centenary of their first exhibition with a special installation of work from our permanent collection.

This special presentation of works on paper by the Canadian painter and printmaker Walter J. Phillips (1884–1963) explores the artist’s emotional connection and artistic response to Ontario’s Lake of the Woods region.

Hartman's portraits speak to the power of the imagination in experiencing – physically, emotionally and philosophically – the diverse landscapes of our country and the stories that they hold.

Brenda Draney’s paintings, with their gestural mark-making and wide expanses of canvas, present fragmented narratives that stem from her personal history as a Cree woman, living in northern Alberta.