Portrait Gallery of Canada

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Portrait Gallery of Canada
Established2021; 0 years ago (2021)
LocationOttawa, Ontario
The former Embassy of the United States, Ottawa building, previously proposed for Library and Archives Canada's collection of portraits in 2001.

The Portrait Gallery of Canada (French: Musée du portrait du Canada) is a federally-registered not-for-profit corporation.[1]

On July 30, 2020, the Portrait Gallery of Canada launched its online presence with its inaugural exhibition Personae: Indigenous and Canadian Portraits 1861-2020.[2]

Offering "a taste of the Portrait Gallery of Canada’s future," the online exhibition featured a large recently-completed drawing by contemporary Saulteaux artist Wally Dion whose title makes reference to Goya’s The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters; contemporary wet plate collodion prints by Canadian photographer Christine Fitzgerald of Indigenous rights activist Kahentínehtha’ Horn and her daughters actress Kaniehtiio Horn and Dr. Kahente Horn-Miller, Assistant Vice-President, Indigenous Initiatives, Carleton University; photographs by Canadian artist Arnaud Maggs, including a 1977 portrait of Canadian poet and singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen; documentary photographs of refugees seeking asylum in Canada and living in shelters by Canadian artist Ruth Kaplan; a series of tintype portraits by Canadian artist Karen Stentaford; two photographs from Thaddeus Holownia’s Headlighting series and self-portraits by photographer Stephen Stober and the curator of the exhibition Robert Tombs, all three of whom are Royal Canadian Academicians.[3]

Private sector donations and in-kind contributions help the Portrait Gallery of Canada[4] in its ability to pursue its vision and showcase its online contemporary art exhibitions of portraits of people from across Canada and from all walks of life.[3]

Organizers and supporters envision a future when the PGC will partner with the Government of Canada to: 1) build a world-class collection of historical and contemporary portraits that humanize the stories of Canada’s past and present, and open a window into Canada’s future; 2) host innovative exhibitions in an inspiring physical space that is accessible to visitors of all ages and from all walks of life; and 3) make its collection and programming accessible to people who live outside the National Capital Region through engaging and interactive web-based and travelling exhibitions.[5]

Location[]

Currently, the Portrait Gallery of Canada (PGC) exists as an online entity only.[6]

However, its volunteer Board of Directors[7] is actively seeking partnerships and visiting buildings and locations in the National Capital Region to determine where to place the future museum.[5]

A hub-and-spoke model[]

The board’s plan is to have the PGC’s main facility act as the “hub” of a “hub-and-spoke” model. A network of partners—museums, galleries and local community venues located across Canada—will help the PGC achieve its national mandate.

In turn, these partners or “spokes” will benefit from the PGC’s future professional staff, collections and travelling exhibitions. The PGC will also utilize an advanced online capability beyond simple digitization of artworks. Opportunities for innovative web-based, interactive exhibition and educational programs will be built into the PGC’s digital infrastructure and operations from the outset.[8]

Collection[]

The Portrait Gallery of Canada's vision is to build a world-class collection of portraits of the people of Canada, from all regions of the country and from all walks of life.[6]

History[]

1904: The Dominion Archives begins to collect portraits[]

Library and Archives Canada (LAC), known as The Dominion Archives at the time, was founded in 1872 and tasked with acquiring documents related to Canadian history. In 1904, Arthur George Doughty, the newly-appointed Dominion Archivist, began to include maps, flags, posters, portraits and other visual records to the nation’s growing collection of written material.[9]

Today, the LAC’s portrait collection includes over 20,000 paintings, drawings and prints, four million photographs and several thousand caricatures, as well as 10,000 medals and philatelic items. The collection is stored at LAC’s Preservation Centre in Gatineau, Quebec.

1938—1956: A Royal Canadian Academician’s dream[]

The lifelong dream of Canadian portrait artist John Wycliffe Lowes Forster, R.C.A., was to build a portrait gallery of historic and renowned Canadians. When he died in 1938, his estate bequeathed fifteen of his portraits to form the core of a national portrait collection and $10,000 towards the creation of a national portrait gallery. Although the Corporation of the National Portrait Gallery was registered in 1939, it was never realized. In 1956, members of the board transferred Forster’s donation to the Royal Ontario Museum.[10]

1941—1971: Nation-building through portraiture[]

For 30 years, the National Film Board of Canada’s Still Photography Division was mandated to document Canadian society in order to foster a sense of national cohesion. Official photographers travelled across Canada to document the daily lives of Canadians at home, at work and at play. At the time they were taken, these official portraits were reproduced in countless newspapers, magazines, and publications in Canada and internationally. The collection was later transferred to Library and Archives Canada.[11]

1998—2010: The Portrait Gallery of Canada, an LAC programme[]

In 1998, the Embassy of the United States in Canada vacated its former building at 100 Wellington Street in Ottawa and moved to its new building on Sussex Drive in 1999. Designated as a Classified Federal Heritage Building,[12] the former U.S. embassy is valued for its classic Beaux-Arts architecture and for its prime location directly across from Parliament Hill.

In 2001, the Government of Canada, under the leadership of Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, announced that the former embassy would become the future site of a new Portrait Gallery of Canada, a venue for Library and Archives Canada (LAC) to showcase its national portrait collection. Dr. Lilly Koltun, head of LAC’s Art and Photography Division, was appointed director general and plans were put in place to expand the building with a modern wing.[13]

In 2003, British architect Edward Jones of London’s Dixon Jones, Steven Teeple and Chris Radigan of Toronto's Teeple Architects, and Ottawa architect David Cole won a competition to design the new Portrait Gallery of Canada. Their proposal was to house the LAC’s permanent collection of portraits in the former embassy building and to showcase temporary exhibitions in a new addition. Included in the design were administrative facilities, restoration laboratories, a lecture theatre and a rooftop café overlooking Parliament Hill.[14]

Originally projected to cost $22 million, demolition costs,[15] which included the removal and disposal of the electrical and mechanical system, wall partitions, and carcinogenic asbestos insulation, caused the budget to increase to $45 million. These issues caused the museum’s anticipated 2006 opening to be delayed until at least 2007.[16]

In 2006, despite five years of planning and $11 million dollars already invested in the project, the Government of Canada, under the leadership of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, stopped further work on the building, citing escalating costs.[17]

In November 2007, the Government of Canada announced a new competition. The government invited private developers from Halifax, Quebec City, Montreal, Ottawa-Gatineau, Toronto, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver to submit proposals for a public-private partnership to build a new Portrait Gallery of Canada in their respective cities. The plan was to have the new museum built by 2012.[18]

In 2008, Senator Jerry Grafstein introduced a private member’s bill in the Senate of Canada (S-233) An Act to amend the Library and Archives of Canada Act (National Portrait Gallery) in order to establish a permanent display in Ottawa for portraits from the LAC's collection. The proposal was to return to the original 2001 idea of hosting the collection at the former U.S. embassy. Although the Senator reintroduced the bill (S-201) in 2009, the Senate did not pass it.[19]

On Friday, November 7, 2008, the Government of Canada announced that its plans to select a new site for the Portrait Gallery of Canada based on proposals submitted by developers was cancelled. “In this time of global economic instability, it is important that the federal government continue to manage its own affairs prudently and pragmatically,” stated Minister of Canadian Heritage James Moore in a media release. “The selection process failed to meet the best interests of both the Portrait Gallery and taxpayers.”[20]

In 2009, the Government of Canada cancelled all plans to create a new portrait gallery. Instead, it called on Library and Archives Canada (LAC) to create a web-based portrait portal of its collection. On May 30, 2012, the Portrait Portal was launched on LAC’s website.[21]

2016—2017: Public consultations[]

In August 2016, the Government of Canada, under the leadership of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, invited Canadians to provide their input and ideas on the future use of the former U.S. embassy.[22] Over 6,500 Canadians, as well as over 500 international visitors to the nation’s capital, shared their views, which helped inform the government’s decision.[23]

Respondents were presented with a list of six possible public uses for the revitalized site at 100 Wellington Street. The three top choices were “Gallery” appealing to 57% of respondents, “Canada House” at 46%, followed by an “Indigenous cultural centre.” From those who supported the idea of a “Gallery,” two in three respondents specifically called for a portrait gallery.[24]

In March 2017, under the patronage of The Right Honourable Beverley McLachlin, former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, prominent art enthusiasts and community leaders joined forces to advocate for the Portrait Gallery of Canada. They commissioned a survey and concluded that the public’s interest in having a national portrait gallery in the former United States embassy remained.[25]

In April 2017, Senator Serge Joyal, Senator Paul McIntyre, Senator Patricia Bovey and Senator Douglas Black sent a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urging him to resurrect the portrait gallery project for the 150th anniversary of Canada. Fifty-five of the 99 sitting senators supported the initiative. "National Archives' portraits should be its base, but the gallery should be much more—vibrant, living, not just of the past but of the present, read the letter, noting the archives has more than 20,000 portrait paintings and photographs."[26]

2017: Announcing a new Indigenous Peoples Space for 100 Wellington Street, Ottawa[]

On June 21, 2017, on National Indigenous Peoples Day, the Government of Canada announced that the former United States embassy at 100 Wellington Street would be repurposed to house the future Indigenous Peoples Space.[27] The Assembly of First Nations, the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami and the Métis National Council agreed to assume responsibility for the project’s vision and realization.[28]

2017—ongoing: The Portrait Gallery of Canada, a new not-for-profit corporation[]

After the Government of Canada’s announcement in 2017, advocates for a Portrait Gallery of Canada (PGC) shifted their focus from lobbying the federal government to creating their own not-for-profit corporation.

Ottawa lawyer Lawson A.W. Hunter, who was one of the driving forces in realizing the Ottawa Art Gallery’s new building, joined Senator Patricia Bovey, former director of the Winnipeg Art Gallery, to assemble an advisory group[7] of artists, designers, writers, historians, politicians, senators, journalists, lawyers, executives and business leaders from across Canada to make the case for the PGC. The Right Honourable Beverley McLachlin, former chief justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, agreed to serve as the advisory group’s patron.[29]

In 2018, the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts (RCA) agreed to support this new private-public partnership, as a collaborator. Robert Tombs, artist, designer and president of the RCA, serves on the PGC’s volunteer Board of Directors.[7]

In 2019, the PGC’s advisory group commissioned Toronto’s Lord Cultural Resources, an international agency that specializes in museum, cultural and heritage sector planning, to research, write and deliver its master plan.[8]

On March 4, 2021, the Portrait Gallery of Canada officially became a federally-registered not-for-profit corporation.[1]

On June 5, 2021, the PGC announced the appointment of Joanne Charette as its first gallery director.[30][31]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Federal Corporation Information - 1194142-9 - Online Filing Centre - Corporations Canada - Corporations - Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada". www.ic.gc.ca. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  2. ^ "SNEAK PEEK: Portrait Gallery of Canada's First Exhibition". Galleries West. August 10, 2020. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
  3. ^ a b "What's On — Ce qui se passe". ....Portrait Gallery of Canada..Musée du portrait du Canada.... Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  4. ^ "Supporters — Partisans". ....Portrait Gallery of Canada..Musée du portrait du Canada.... Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  5. ^ a b "About — À propos". ....Portrait Gallery of Canada..Musée du portrait du Canada.... Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  6. ^ a b "....Portrait Gallery of Canada..Musée du portrait du Canada..." ....Portrait Gallery of Canada..Musée du portrait du Canada.... Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  7. ^ a b c "Leadership — Direction". ....Portrait Gallery of Canada..Musée du portrait du Canada.... Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  8. ^ a b "Master Plan". Portrait Gallery of Canada. September 2019.
  9. ^ Gray, Charlotte. "Canada's Homeless Portrait Gallery". Literary Review of Canada. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  10. ^ Curator, QOR Museum (2012-06-23). "J.W.L. Forster and the Queen's Own Rifles". The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada Regimental Museum and Archive. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  11. ^ "Official Picture, The | McGill-Queen's University Press". www.mqup.ca. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  12. ^ "HistoricPlaces.ca - HistoricPlaces.ca". www.historicplaces.ca. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  13. ^ Koltun, Lilly (2005). "A New Portrait Gallery for Canada: Stacking or Unpacking a National Narrative?". RACAR: revue d'art canadienne / Canadian Art Review. 30 (1/2): 13–24. ISSN 0315-9906.
  14. ^ "Portrait Gallery of Canada, Ottawa - Dixon Jones". www.dixonjones.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  15. ^ Naumetz, Tim (24 April 2006). "Portrait gallery already costs more than $9M".
  16. ^ "Ottawa scraps national portrait gallery". thestar.com. 2008-11-07. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  17. ^ Ross, Val (July 5, 2006). "Time running out for portrait gallery plan". Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  18. ^ "Bidding process for new portrait gallery mired in gaffes". CTVNews. 2009-11-15. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  19. ^ "Senate bills not passed by Senate". lop.parl.ca. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  20. ^ "Ottawa scraps national portrait gallery". thestar.com. 2008-11-07. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  21. ^ Canada, Library and Archives (2013-01-11). "ARCHIVED - Library and Archives Canada Launches Its Portrait Portal". www.bac-lac.gc.ca. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  22. ^ August 9, John Geddes; 2016 (2016-08-09). "Has a national portrait gallery's time come, again?". Macleans.ca. Retrieved 2021-06-29.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  23. ^ Government of Canada, Public Services and Procurement Canada (2016-08-18). "100 Wellington future use - Canada's Parliamentary Precinct - PSPC". www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  24. ^ "Disclaimer - Electronic Collection". epe.lac-bac.gc.ca. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  25. ^ "Fully Half of Canadians (51%) Like Idea of a National Portrait Gallery Across from Parliament Hill". March 20, 2017.
  26. ^ "Sober second look? National portrait gallery gets bipartisan Senate support". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. April 11, 2017. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  27. ^ Government of Canada, Public Services and Procurement Canada (2015-07-31). "Explore the buildings near Parliament Hill – Canada's Parliamentary Precinct - PWGSC". www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  28. ^ Nolan, Brent. "Indigenous Peoples Space – Building the Future Together". Assembly of First Nations. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  29. ^ Gessell, Paul. "High-powered group formed to push for national Gallery of Canadian Identity – ARTSFILE". Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  30. ^ "2021-06-05". ....Portrait Gallery of Canada..Musée du portrait du Canada.... Retrieved 2021-06-29.
  31. ^ "Portrait Gallery of Canada appoints first director, unveils exhibition plans". Retrieved 2021-06-29.

External links[]

https://www.portraitcanada.caCoordinates: 45°25′23″N 75°41′55″W / 45.422921°N 75.698655°W / 45.422921; -75.698655

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