The Collection on View
February 23, 2010 to February 27, 2010
Bartholomaeus Bruyn the Younger, Portrait of a Man, c. 1525.
This exhibit is currently closed for a special event, reopening on Tuesday, October 18.
Beginning in February, the EUROfix exhibition will change into a new installation that continues to build on the art historical roots already established in this ongoing presentation of the permanent collection. Many of the European artworks will remain on display, but they will be joined by an impressive selection of masterworks from the Canadian collection. The new exhibition features over 150 paintings, drawings, decorative arts, and sculptures drawn exclusively from the WAG’s own collection. Spanning six hundred years, the installation pays homage to the Gallery’s European and Canadian holdings, established upon a rich tradition of discerning tastes, creative minds, and public generosity.
Introduced in the first space of this three-gallery exhibition are religious and secular paintings and objects from Northern and Western Europe, and produced between 1400 and 1800. The selection not only highlights the evolution of painting itself, through the representation of perspective and human form, but also the changing relationship between artist and patron. Traversing the mid-19th century, viewers will discover paintings, sculptures, and decorative arts by Canadian artists integrated with the European contingent. Here we observe not only the continuation of Old World styles and themes by New World artists, but we also discern how European aesthetic sensibilities were adapted to and transformed by the North American experience. Euro-Canadian interaction continues within one gallery dedicated solely to works on paper, ranging from topographic studies of the Canadian frontier by early artist-explorers, to Impressionist and Expressionist innovators, to mid-20th century drawings by Inuit masters]. The final offering in the third gallery of the exhibition invites viewers to consider overlapping influences between European and Canadian artists during the first-half of the 20th century.
With the rise of Modernism, artists continued to draw from the past for inspiration, as well as taking older models in revolutionary new directions, often seeking to create new modes of expression using ideas found in non-European visual cultures.
Sponsored by the Johnston Group.
Akeeaktashuk, Shman Riding a Bear, c. 1952.
Related Programs & Events
Past Programs & Events
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Canadian Art Highlights Tours
Wednesday, July 7, 2010 from 2pm to 2:30pmWednesday, July 14, 2010 from 2pm to 2:30pmWednesday, July 21, 2010 from 2pm to 2:30pmWednesday, July 28, 2010 from 2pm to 2:30pmWednesday, August 4, 2010 from 2pm to 2:30pmWednesday, August 11, 2010 from 2pm to 2:30pmWednesday, August 18, 2010 from 2pm to 2:30pmWednesday, August 25, 2010 from 2pm to 2:30pm -
Talk - Piety, Politics and Painting in Reformation Germany
Wednesday, September 22, 2010 from 12:10pm to 1pm -
Drop-In Tours - The Collection on View
Sunday, October 3, 2010 from 2pm to 3pmSunday, October 24, 2010 from 2pm to 3pmSunday, November 21, 2010 from 2pm to 3pmSunday, November 28, 2010 from 2pm to 3pm -
Visit the Conservation Lab!
Enjoy a behind the scenes tour of the WAG's Conservation Lab with Head of Museum Services, Jasmina Vlaovic.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010 from 12:10pm to 1pm -
Heroines of History
Wednesday, April 13, 2011 from 7pm to 8:30pm -
Members' Event - Director's Tour
For WAG members only. WAG Director Stephen Borys will lead a tour of The Collection on View.
Thursday April 14, 2011 at 2pmThursday April 14, 2011 at 5pm -
Art for Lunch - Curator's Tour
Wednesday, April 20, 2011 from 12:10pm to 1pm -
Tour new works in the Collection on View
There are some new and exciting additions to the Collection on View series of exhibitions. Several contemporary works from the permanent collection have snuck their way into this historical display. Join WAG curators and educators for a guided tour and learn more about these interventions!
Wednesday, October 5, 2011 from 12:10pm to 1pm -
Gallery Ball 2011
It's the WAG's gala fundraising event of the year!
Saturday October 15, 2011
Archive
Gallery Hours
Tuesday through Sunday 11am - 5pm
Friday 11am - 9pm
Closed Mondays
Closed Easter Monday, Labour Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas Day