The Art of Canada
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.
…Everything Remains Raw
...Everything Remains Raw is a photographic exploration of the resilience of hip hop culture and asks why this supposed ‘fad’ has not faded away? Archival photographs, as visual representations of hip hop culture in Canada, guides this exhibition’s exploration on the evolution and longevity of this now global cultural phenomenon. Photographic works from Michael Chambers, Sheinina Raj, Demuth Flake, Nabil Shash, Patrick Nichols, and Stella Fakiyesi capture the growth of the hip hop scene, as well as the voice, creativity and influence of these artists.
Norval Morrisseau (1931-2007)
A display of works by Norval Morrisseau and the Woodland School from the McMichael’s permanent collection.
J.E.H. MacDonald: Up Close
Works from the McMichael collection to celebrate the art and science of J.E.H. MacDonald’s artistic practice. McMichael conservator, Alison Douglas, will share the research results from a Canadian Conservation Institute study that created a base line for ‘what makes a MacDonald painting?’ Complete with microscopic photographs, the materials and methods of the artist will be explored in depth, especially in relation to the artist’s predilection for small studies.
Laying the Foundation: Works from the Original Gift
The McMichael Canadian Art Collection started out as a modest four-room home, built in 1954 for a young photographer and his wife – Robert and Signe McMichael. It was designed in a robust but stylish log cabin aesthetic by architect Leo Venchiarutti (1947-2007).
New Acquisitions
With its unique mandate to collect and celebrate the Art of Canada, the McMichael’s permanent collection is always growing. This is made possible largely by to the exceptional generosity of our donors. This exhibition showcases a selection of recent additions to the permanent collection, many on display for the first time.
Full Painting Studio
Instruction will be offered to artists working to refine their offerings in the subject of their choice—landscape, still life, figurative/portraiture, wildlife/pets—and in their individual style, be it realism or varying degrees of abstraction. Special attention will be given to basic drawing techniques, composition, colour, texture, use of materials and effective brushstrokes.
Beats2Borders Videography Workshop
In conjunction with the exhibition …Everything Remains Raw: Photographing Toronto’s Hip Hop Culture from Analogue to Digital, the McMichael Canadian Art Collection is pleased to present the Beats2Bordes Videography Workshop, a unique learning opportunity for youth aged 14 to 18. Led by photojournalist Juan Gomez, the workshop will cover essential videography techniques, including composition, lighting and shooting on location.
Graffiti Art Within the Hip Hop Movement
Speakers: Eklipz, EGR, Elicser, and Dr. Mark V. Campbell Since the late 1960s graffiti has been seen as a public nuisance and a problem in major cities like New York. More than 40 years later, cities are now embracing graffiti with their beautification programs. Join the esteemed graffiti artists, Eklipz, EGR and Elicser while they discuss the importance of street art, their creative practice, and how their aerosol hieroglyphics make urban spaces welcoming.
Figure Painting
Working with professional female and male models, Andrew will guide participants through the basics with simple yet effective exercises that will help them create a drawing or painting of the human figure. Andrew Sookrah will conduct demonstrations in various media styles with running commentary on the process.
David Milne: Modern Painting
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.
Painting Studio
Topics covered include mastering perspective, reflections in water, patterns, texture, skies and clouds, dramatic light, depth and negative space, with special attention given to basic drawing techniques such as composition, colour, texture, and effective brushstrokes.
Dianne Bos: The Sleeping Green
Dianne Bos borrows a phrase from Isaac Rosenberg’s famous World War I poem Break of Day in the Trenches for the title of this exhibition, which consists of extraordinary photographs taken in ‘no-man’s land’, amid the trenches of the former Western Front.
Dynamic Drawing: Powerful Pastels
Those who love to draw will delight in this new, advanced workshop. Participants will use real life objects as the subjects for their drawings, with a shadow box and controlled lighting. You will be encouraged to take an unhurried, contemplative approach to plan your painting.
Stephen Andrews: Aftermath
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.
Aftermath Discussion Panel
Saturday, November 10 at 11:30 am Serving members of military and veterans may RSVP for FREE admission to this event by emailing [email protected]. Aftermath Discussion Panel On the eve of the centenary of the Armistice, this moderated panel will explore the role of art in recording and memorializing historical trauma. The forum will include David [...]
Remembering the Great War: 100 Years Later
Join the McMichael Canadian Art Collection for a solemn day of remembrance.
The En Plein Air Competition Exhibition Opening Reception
Please join us at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection for a reception celebrating the opening of this year’s En Plein Air Competition Exhibition. Winning works and artists of distinction will be showcased in the Community Gallery from November 17, 2018 to early January 2019. The reception will include light snacks and refreshments and remarks from [...]
Modernism in Manhattan: David Milne’s New York 1903 – 1916
This talk, presented by Jessica Todd Smith, the Susan Gray Detweiler Curator of American Art and Manager of the Center for American Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, will explore some of the extraordinary social, cultural, technological, and aesthetic revolutions that began to unfold during this period and examine the formative experiences that helped Milne develop his unique artistic vision.
This House Was Made For Christmas
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.”