Living at the Davies would be a pleasure to anyone who has a passion for art. Situated in the Downtown Grange Park district is the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) that sits on a 480,000 sq. ft. area of physical space. It one of the largest and critically acclaimed Galleries in North America and one definitely worth checking out!
The AGO was built in 1900, and was then later redesigned in 2008 by Toronto’s prominent architect Frank Gehry. Its collection includes more than 80,000 works spanning the first century to the present day. The gallery has an open, airy and easy to roam layout, with a spiral staircase.
Reasons to spend a sassy day at the Art Gallery of Ontario
Residents of The Davies Condo downtown will surely love the following significant collections at AGO that include the largest collection of Canadian art (a wide collection of works from the Renaissance and the Baroque eras), European art, African and Oceanic art, and modern and contemporary collection.
Canadian Art.
The focus of the Art Gallery of Ontario is the remarkable collections of Canadian art, a wide collection of works from the Renaissance and the Baroque eras. This includes The Thomson Collection of Canadian art that elevated the gallery’s holdings, particularly during the momentous presentation of the First Nation’s art of the Pacific Northwest together with the works of Tom Thomson, Cornelius Krieghoff, the Group of Seven and Emily Carr, Paul Emile Borduas, David Milne, Alex Colville and William Kurelek.
European Art.
The European collections are from the Italian Renaissance to the mid-‘90s. It contains over 1,000 Thomson Collections and small-scale sculptures from the Middle Ages to the 1700s. Although the Massacre of the Innocents by Paul Reuben, a historic Flemish Baroque painting, was the center of attraction from the Thomson Collection, the valuable, petite and ivory and boxwood items characterize most of the interesting Thomson Collections.
African and Oceanic.
The African Collection has approximately 95 artworks that date back several centuries. Created from different materials that emulate sculptural traditions in the specific areas, these are greatly focused on figural and sculptural works from Central and West Africa. The artworks range from reliquaries and masks to major architectural decoration and large free-standing sculptures and either made from copper alloys, beeswax, iron, glass beads, soapstone, ivory, and wood. Sizes also vary – from tiny items that can fit into a palm’s hand to an ornately carved 3-meter door frame.
Modern and Contemporary Collection
Painting collections from modern category belong to the 20th century consisting of European artists’ paintings and sculptures from 1900 to 1960. It holds the stunning works of brilliant geniuses like Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, Constanti Brancusi, and more. The collection also includes an excellent group of Surrealist works and one of North America’s greatest sculpture collection, from the world-renowned Henry Moore Sculpture Centre and creations by Naum Gabo. Creations by Abstract Expressionist artists and their influences are included in the American modern collection.
The contemporary collections provide visitors a complete glimpse of the 1960s American and European art and the 1985 Canadian art. The Canadian contemporary art is complete with sculpture, painting, photography, works on paper, film and video, and is usually combined with a historical element that helps visitors to have a deeper understanding of the artists. The AGO has acquired important works in the past 10 years and several artworks by Stephen Andrews, David Altmejd, Brian Jungen, Murray Favro, and more.
Prints and Drawings Collection
The Prints and Drawings Collection at AGO showcase a complete history of the West works on paper from the 1400s to the present and interconnects with all the other collections. Occupying the Marvin Gelber Print and Drawing Study Centre and vault, it has more than 20,000 print, drawing and watercolour collections and more than 50,000 photographs.
Photography
The AGO Photography section has reached over 50,000 and is a collection of works from the 1840s up to the present. The calotypes of Linnaeus Tripe (a British photographer), heliogravures by Édouard Baldus (a French photographer), and Charles Nègre works are the highlights of the Photography collection.
The AGO has glass storage areas where more art works are put on display. Located on two levels is a gift shop, vending books and original jewelries so visitors can have some mementoes from visiting the gallery. Guests can have a light meal or snack in between viewings at the Café AGO on the concourse level.
Residents do not only get to taste healthy condo living in the new condo development Toronto but also had the opportunity to increase their knowledge about art from the different eras. Call The Davies office at 416-873-0862 for more information today.