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International Art Treasures Web Magazine February 2005 |
Transformation: AGO
AGO's Permanent Collection
Christo and Jeanne-Claude:
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Title: Lake and Mountains, 1928
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Grocery magnate, Galen Weston, the Chairman and President of George Weston Limited, owns one of the largest collections of Christo's preparatory artworks. |
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The supermarket doyen has generously loaned his collection to the AGO for its debut display in Canada. Galen Weston says, "The joy of Christo and Jeanne-Claude's work is that each drawing or collage is a preparation for something real and monumental." |
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Title: Surrounded Islands, Biscayne Bay, Greater Miami, Florida, 1980-83.
Artists: Christo and Jeanne-Claude (Americans, born 1935)
Photo: Wolfgang Volz © Christo1983, 2005.
Image Courtesy: The Art Gallery of Ontario
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He adds, "Their work really does make me raise my head and wonder if I'm thinking as broadly or as imaginatively as I should." |
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Matthew Teitelbaum, AGO Director and CEO, is enthusiastic about the exhibit. "Christo and Jeanne-Claude are the perfect artists to be presented by the Gallery as we move into our Transformation AGO Project. Their endeavors begin with visionary ideas, and their completed works are celebrations of the great things that can happen when people, resources and excitement are mobilized into action by innovative thinking." |
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Noted for their large expression of art in unique locations the couple has among their artistic resume
- Surrounded 11 Florida Islands with brilliant pink floating fabric
- Suspended a curtain of orange fabric between two imposing mountains in the Rockies
- Wrapping a section of the Australian coastline with 90,000 square meters of erosion control mesh and 56.3 kilometers of rope.
In February 2005 Central Park in New York City will be the host to a Christo and Jeanne-Claude installation project consisting of 7,500 vinyl 16-foot high gates with saffron color fabric panels.
Years of planning and millions of dollars are necessary requirements for the couples visions and yet they do not accept any outside funding or sponsorship. All of their installations are self-funded, partially through the sale of Christo's preparatory drawings.
Massive Change:
The Future of Global Design
March 11 - May 29, 2005
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Toronto-based designer Bruce Mau conceived Massive Change, a touring exhibition that delves into the global impact of design innovations. |
Eleven themes are used in an exploration of design within its uses from manufacturing and transportation to military implementations.
Title: Installation photograph of the Image Economies
Gallery at the Vancouver Art
Gallery. The gallery is saturated with fascinating and incredible images
that provoke visitors to think about the process by which they were
captured. The instruments and devices that capture these remarkable images
are on display within table-mounted vitrines
Photo: Robert Keziere/Vancouver Art Gallery/Bruce Mau Design
Image Courtesy: The Art Gallery of Ontario
The central question the exhibition asks is "Now that we can do anything, what will we do?"
Catherine the Great
From the State Hermitage Museum, Russia
October 1, 2005 - January 1, 2006
Title: Snuffbox, c. 1790,
Artist: Master PMG,
Medium: Gold and Silver, Chased and Engraved,
Rock-Crystal, Precious and Semiprecious Stones.
© The State Hermitage Museum.
Image Courtesy: The Art Gallery of Ontario
Empress Catherine the Great was one of the finest art collectors throughout history. Her love of art and patronage of artists fueled the Russian cultural and social transformation during her reign. Paintings, jewelry, gems, furniture and architectural models will all form part of this exhibition. Many of the objects will make their North American debut with this exhibit at the AGO.
Swing Space
Challenges arise during the expansion. Various collections and temporary exhibits do not have the usual galleries available to them. As the transformation continues the AGO will constantly have to alter their planning to incorporate what space is available for use knowing it will alter throughout the construction phase of the project. Rather that let this become a problem the innovative staff seized the opportunity with Swing Space Series.
Matthew points out, "The Swing Space series builds on the opportunity of spaces in flux during the construction. These unconventional gallery spaces will lend themselves to a broad scope of programming, including an AGO performance art series."
The Art Gallery of Ontario will expand its gallery sizes by 97,000 square feet, increasing viewing space by 40%. Art aficionados await!