3Dementia
Senior Member
Thanks GB.
If (G)god is in the details, it appears he/she will be spending some quality time at the AGO.
If (G)god is in the details, it appears he/she will be spending some quality time at the AGO.
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adma
Superstar
Urban Shocker
Doyenne
It'll be interesting to see what effect closing for over a year has on the AGO's attendance figures when they re-open. The physical limitations of their "transformation" site have obliged them to take a different approach from the ROM, which remained open during their "renaissance". I would have thought, though, that the AGO could have rotated some of their collection through existing gallery and exhibition spaces around town and across the Province, but there hasn't been much sign of that happening. Their promotions at the moment are mostly tied to getting discounts for loyal AGO members at the National Ballet, the TSO, Soulpepper, the Textile Gallery etc., and advertising some Luminato installations that they are presenting next June.
MetroMan
Senior Member
Speaking of LuminaTO, wasn't the AGO supposed to open in time for that `a la ROM? What I'm hearing now points to a fall opening. Which one is it?
whatever
Senior Member
I could almost see a partially completed AGO opening up for Luminato in early June. The hoist comes down tomorrow, interior work is advancing rapidly, and some of the new gallery spaces are already taking shape.
They definitely won't have their entire collection installed, but I bet the main entrance, Walkers Court, the shield, both sets of stairs, and the tower galleries could be open for exploration.
They definitely won't have their entire collection installed, but I bet the main entrance, Walkers Court, the shield, both sets of stairs, and the tower galleries could be open for exploration.
MetroMan
Senior Member
whatever, is the glazing completely installed? When will they install the 'curled' glazing on the sides?
p5connex
Active Member
I noticed today that they have installed a few more of the blue titanium panels which ultimately cover the entire addition- and they are extremely blue, but they should look really good. I think the combination of our often dull wintery skies and the blue titanium will make for a very interesting effect..
also, the canopy glazing is not finished yet, there is still work being done.
p5
also, the canopy glazing is not finished yet, there is still work being done.
p5
The AGO is telling its members that the only AGO participation with LuminaTO will be some installations around town that it will be curating. I doubt the Dundas Street doors will be swinging open before late Fall.
42
Benc7
Active Member
I wonder about this too. The ROM learned a painful lesson from its last renovation/addition (the one that was torn down to make room for the Crystal). If memory serves, the museum closed for two years and lost a third of it's membership, something they had no wish to repeat this time. The AGO did offer a choice for members; keep the membership going and have it extended at no extra charge or get a tax receipt for the time of closure. I chose the former, as I'm sure many others did. The excitement and anticipation over the opening of the new AGO facilities will (I hope) attract new members as well as the old.
As an aside, the web-cam on the AGO site really doesn't do the "sneeze guard" justice. Whereas the ROM Crystal pokes at Bloor Street (in a most delightful way) the galleria insinuates its massive presence more gently onto Dundas.
Urban Shocker
Doyenne
Yes, the ROM's Terrace Galleries were a big enough mistake in themselves, but closing the museum for that length of time only compounded the problem.
AlvinofDiaspar
Moderator
From the Star:
Inside the AGO
Jan 14, 2008 04:30 AM
Joanna Smith
Staff reporter
The Art Gallery of Ontario may have closed its doors a few months ago to complete its $254 million makeover by renowned architect Frank Gehry, but the building is far from empty as staff is working hard to turn a series of rooms into a gallery. We rang the doorbell outside the noisy shipping dock entrance to get a glimpse of the work in progress.
At a glance
As curator of Canadian art, Gerald McMaster resembles a giant lording over a vast kingdom.
It helps, of course, that today his domain is only a fraction of its actual size – so small, in fact, that it is sitting on a table.
McMaster says the scale model, complete with tiny full-colour copies of the paintings on the walls, helps museum staff figure out where everything should go without having to install artwork and then take it down again every time they change their mind.
"We started out working on paper, but then we soon realized, `What does the artwork look like in scale, in real space?'"
In another room around the corner, the model is a step closer to the real thing.
There, a Thomas Smith sculpture called Two Women sits on its pedestal surrounded by paintings and drawings hung on the walls.
However, the sculpture is actually a cardboard cut-out, kind of like the highbrow version of something you would see in the lobby of a movie theatre.
"This is just to see: `Will it work right there?'" McMaster says, noting that sculptures are much heavier to move around than other media if museum staff realize they do not fit.
"We have from now to opening to get it right," he says. "It's a lot of playing chess."
The salon
A room where dozens of paintings hang tightly together on deep red walls in the style of a 19th century salon was a popular feature of the AGO before it closed for renovations.
Its spirit will remain when the museum reopens, scheduled for September, but McMaster says they are switching things a bit.
The paintings are now arranged chronologically, beginning with the time of Confederation in 1867 on one side and then proceeding through the decades to paintings done in 1918 on the opposite wall.
The style of salon also shifts to reflect the periods the works are from, with one wall arranged tightly and then becoming looser as the room continues.
The salon now also showcases more work by women, such as Gertrude Spurr Cutts, Alice Des Clayes, Mary Ella Dignam, Caroline Farncomb, Marion Long, Laura Muntz Lyall, Helen Galloway McNicoll and Frances Norma Loring.
Favourites, such as Paul Peel's After the Bath from 1890, will remain in the space visitors have become accustomed to seeing them.
Prompting the viewer to think
McMaster removes a large sheet of cardboard from two works on paper hanging on the wall not too far from a bunch of crates and power tools.
Works on paper can be shown only three months at a time so the light does not damage them, he explains, and the cardboard prolongs their shelf life while the museum is void of visitors.
The works, Red Tree by Emily Carr and Fir Tree, Beaver Lake by Rodney Graham, are from different periods but they all depict trees.
They hang alongside a painting of a tree by Alex Colville, called Elm Tree at Horton Landing.
McMaster says the museum is trying to arrange works thematically rather than chronologically in order to prompt a more engaged response from the viewer.
Just around the corner from the trees, an entire room devoted to the theme of "quest" from many different historic periods is reaching for the same idea.
"It's about stopping people right away and getting them to think, rather than just grazing," he said.
AoD
Inside the AGO
Jan 14, 2008 04:30 AM
Joanna Smith
Staff reporter
The Art Gallery of Ontario may have closed its doors a few months ago to complete its $254 million makeover by renowned architect Frank Gehry, but the building is far from empty as staff is working hard to turn a series of rooms into a gallery. We rang the doorbell outside the noisy shipping dock entrance to get a glimpse of the work in progress.
At a glance
As curator of Canadian art, Gerald McMaster resembles a giant lording over a vast kingdom.
It helps, of course, that today his domain is only a fraction of its actual size – so small, in fact, that it is sitting on a table.
McMaster says the scale model, complete with tiny full-colour copies of the paintings on the walls, helps museum staff figure out where everything should go without having to install artwork and then take it down again every time they change their mind.
"We started out working on paper, but then we soon realized, `What does the artwork look like in scale, in real space?'"
In another room around the corner, the model is a step closer to the real thing.
There, a Thomas Smith sculpture called Two Women sits on its pedestal surrounded by paintings and drawings hung on the walls.
However, the sculpture is actually a cardboard cut-out, kind of like the highbrow version of something you would see in the lobby of a movie theatre.
"This is just to see: `Will it work right there?'" McMaster says, noting that sculptures are much heavier to move around than other media if museum staff realize they do not fit.
"We have from now to opening to get it right," he says. "It's a lot of playing chess."
The salon
A room where dozens of paintings hang tightly together on deep red walls in the style of a 19th century salon was a popular feature of the AGO before it closed for renovations.
Its spirit will remain when the museum reopens, scheduled for September, but McMaster says they are switching things a bit.
The paintings are now arranged chronologically, beginning with the time of Confederation in 1867 on one side and then proceeding through the decades to paintings done in 1918 on the opposite wall.
The style of salon also shifts to reflect the periods the works are from, with one wall arranged tightly and then becoming looser as the room continues.
The salon now also showcases more work by women, such as Gertrude Spurr Cutts, Alice Des Clayes, Mary Ella Dignam, Caroline Farncomb, Marion Long, Laura Muntz Lyall, Helen Galloway McNicoll and Frances Norma Loring.
Favourites, such as Paul Peel's After the Bath from 1890, will remain in the space visitors have become accustomed to seeing them.
Prompting the viewer to think
McMaster removes a large sheet of cardboard from two works on paper hanging on the wall not too far from a bunch of crates and power tools.
Works on paper can be shown only three months at a time so the light does not damage them, he explains, and the cardboard prolongs their shelf life while the museum is void of visitors.
The works, Red Tree by Emily Carr and Fir Tree, Beaver Lake by Rodney Graham, are from different periods but they all depict trees.
They hang alongside a painting of a tree by Alex Colville, called Elm Tree at Horton Landing.
McMaster says the museum is trying to arrange works thematically rather than chronologically in order to prompt a more engaged response from the viewer.
Just around the corner from the trees, an entire room devoted to the theme of "quest" from many different historic periods is reaching for the same idea.
"It's about stopping people right away and getting them to think, rather than just grazing," he said.
AoD
drum118
Superstar
Main Entrance
MetroMan
Senior Member
I passed by yesterday. Walking from Chinatown, it looks like they're building a huge Noah's Arc!
As I suspected, the faceted glazing rounds out as more panels are installed. Just like pixels on a tv screen, your eye is tricked into thinking its curved glass.
As I suspected, the faceted glazing rounds out as more panels are installed. Just like pixels on a tv screen, your eye is tricked into thinking its curved glass.
urbandreamer
recession proof
Maybe the ROMbarn animals should be moved to this AGOshed? A much better viewing platform don't ya think?
It's a pity the glass canopy doesn't extend down to the ground--it would look complete; a sort of one-sided galleria. Then widen the sidewalk along the edge/narrow Dundas West here into a streetcar/2 lane road only. Plant some nice all-weather hedges and trees, nice benches to sit on to admire the animals, etc. Dreaming? Oh crap, 'tis Toronto....
It's a pity the glass canopy doesn't extend down to the ground--it would look complete; a sort of one-sided galleria. Then widen the sidewalk along the edge/narrow Dundas West here into a streetcar/2 lane road only. Plant some nice all-weather hedges and trees, nice benches to sit on to admire the animals, etc. Dreaming? Oh crap, 'tis Toronto....
Urban Shocker
Doyenne
That first image shows how the lower facet in even a gentle curve can create a visually distracting "break" in what would otherwise have been a smooth reflection of the city, had they used curved glass.