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Art Canada Institute is a bilingual, non-profit research organization that aims to promote and support the study of Canadian art history.[1][2] It has been described as “a comprehensive, multi-tiered, online-based resource for the general public on Canadian art history.[3] The Art Canada Institute’s pillars of programming include: The Canadian Online Art Book Project, The Canadian Art Library Series, The Canadian Schools Art Education Program, The Redefining Canadian Art History Fellowship Program, the Art Canada Institute weekly newsletter, and public art talks.[4][5][6][7]

History

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Established in 2012, the non-governmental initiative Art Canada Institute arose out of Founder and Executive Director Sara Angel's, C.M..[2] concern over the lack of authoritative resources on Canadian art and artists available on the Internet.[8] A Trudeau Scholar and arts journalist with a background in publishing, Angel intended to address what she viewed as an absence of accessible and inclusive material on Canadian visual culture through the creation of the ACI, which has been described as "a comprehensive, multi-tiered, online-based resource for the general public on Canadian art history."[3]

Angel gained the support of John Fraser, who was the master of Massey College in 2010, the year she began her PhD at the University of Toronto.[3] Fraser felt the ACI's goals were in harmony with Vincent Massey's vision of "the coming together of town and gown,"[2] and Fraser himself would later become the Institute's Founding Chair.[9]

Angel continued to build support over the next year and a half, but it was only after she was named a Trudeau Foundation Doctoral Scholar and was awarded a generous grant, which she put towards the fledgling ACI, that the Institute became a reality.[2] Since that time the ACI has taken shape and acquired a board of directors, an institute advisory committee, a book project advisory committee, a commissioning editor and a list of over 50 contributing writers.[10] Among ACI’s past and present Directors are Gerald McMaster, Jon Dellandrea (Chair Emeritus), Charlotte Gray (Chair Emeritus), Kiki Delaney (Chair Emeritus), Jalynn Bennett, and Roy Heenan. In 2023, Angel received an Order of Canada “for her significant contributions to Canadian art history as a visual arts journalist and founder of the Art Canada Institute.”[8]

In its aim to create a central, online, and contemporary resource for Canadian art history, the Art Canada Institute has brought together art historians, curators, and visual culture experts in the creation of original scholarship that reflects "the people, themes and topics that have defined Canada's visual arts heritage."[11] The Institute is currently supported through private and corporate donations and is registered Canadian charity.[12]

Programs

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The Online Canadian Art Book Project

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In November 2013, the ACI launched its inaugural program the Online Canadian Art Book Project with the release of Jack Chambers: Life and Work by Mark Cheetham, the first in a series of free online e-books.[11] The project is encyclopedic in nature and meant for a general audience, with authors, who include art historians and curators from across Canada, contributing original scholarship that addresses subjective topics such as an artist's significance.[13] To date, ACI has published 60 online art books, reaching millions of online readers.[14][4] The Canadian Online Art Book Project includes books on artists from geographically diverse regions of Canada, such as Annie Pootoogook, Takao Tanabe, Emily Carr, Norval Morrisseau, Mary Pratt, Lionel LeMoine FitzGerald, and Françoise Sullivan.[15]

Intended to be accessible and inclusive each volume is published in English and French, and in multiple formats and all are freely available on the ACI website.[1] Institutional partnerships with cultural heritage institutions across Canada afforded the ACI a wealth of material and every edition is well illustrated with reproductions of major works and archival objects, making materials that had been "hidden away in vaults or perhaps able to be seen only at specific galleries" available to a wider audience.[16]

The artists in the series are usually considered "seminal figures in Canadian art,"[17] and include works by Joyce Wieland, Yves Gaucher, Pitseolak Ashoona, Prudence Heward and Harold Town.[18] The Canadian Online Art Book Project also aims to address "holes in Canadian art history"[19] by featuring artists absent from the mainstream narrative. In an interview founder Angel explains that the ACI means to "redefine the canon"[10] by providing "a balance between well-known artists, such as Michael Snow, and artists who should be household names but are not, such as Kathleen Munn," a painter who was highly respected in her time, but is now on the fringes of the Canadian art historical canon.[19] Recent books in the Art Canada Institute’s series on individual artists include: Betty Goodwin: Life & Work (2024) by Jessica Bradley, Carl Beam: Life & Work (2024) by Anong Migwans Beam, Takao Tanabe: Life & Work (2023) by Ian Thom, Sophie Pemberton: Life & Work (2023) by Katharine Bridge, Alfred Pellan: Life & Work (2023) by Maria Rosa Lehmann, Marion Nicoll: Life & Work (2023) by Catharine Mastin, and Jin-me Yoon: Life & Work (2023) by Ming Tiampo.

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ACI’s Canadian Art Library Series offers Canada’s first book series on Canadian artists. These books are print replicas selected from ACI’s digital art library and up to four titles are published annually.

Notable titles include Revision and Resistance: mistikôsiwak (Wooden Boat People) at The Metropolitan Museum of Art (2020) by Kent Monkman. With contributions from an array of art historians and curators,[20] this book records Monkman’s creation of his critically heralded diptych at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.[21] A second ACI book by Monkman, Being Legendary at Royal Ontario Museum: Confronting Colonialism, Rethinking History (2022), was described as “the most provocative of [the] year’s Indigenous titles” and named one of the Best Art Books of the Year by Galleries West Magazine.[22]

Public Art Talks

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Another way that the ACI fulfills their mandate to make "Canadian art history a contemporary conversation,"[19] is through its Lecture Series, which is open to the public and given by the authors of the online art books, in conversation with other respected scholars and experts Canadian art history. The talks, are videotaped and posted on the ACI website. Subjects range from the legacies of artists who define what Canadian art is to Canadian Women Artists and the War to Art Fraud in Canada.[23]

At an ACI Public Talk in 2021, the artist Kent Monkman spoke for the first time in a live interview about the production of the monumental diptych, mistikôsiwak (Wooden Boat People), commissioned by the Metropolitan Museum of Art,[24][25] and how the work relates to that museum’s North American Indigenous, American, and European art collections, “including challenging such works as the iconic 1851 painting Washington Crossing the Delaware by German-American artist Emanuel Leutze.”[26]

The Canadian Schools Art Education Program

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Created to complement ACI's Canadian Online Art Book Project, The Canadian Schools Art Education Program provides expert-authored teacher resource guides for primary and secondary school educators to facilitate the study of a wide range of subjects through the work of Canadian artists. ACI has published 46 guides to date, including resources on Kazuo Nakamura and mathematical concepts, developed in partnership with the teacher-based initiative The Art of Math; Iljuwas Bill Reid and Ways of Knowing; Prudence Heward and Early 20th century women; and Canadian artists and Climate Change, developed in partnership with educational non-profit Green Learning.[27][28] The program also offers Independent Student Learning Activities, which can be distributed directly to students and support learning online and at home. All content is open-source, available to audiences free of charge in both English and French.

Each year the Art Canada Institute Education Program presents the Canadian Art Inspiration Student Challenge. As stated in Canadian Teacher Magazine, Students in Grades 7 through 12 are invited to create original artworks in any medium inspired by the nation's leading artists. Cash prizes of $500 for first place winners and $250 for honourable mentions will be awarded in different age categories.[23]

In 2023, the ACI Education Program won the Ontario Art Education Association‘s Community Art Educator Award.[29]

Friday Newsletter

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ACI’s weekly Friday newsletter keeps readers informed of the organization’s latest programming, and offers curated selections of Canadian artworks that illuminate current events in the art world and beyond as well as significant moments in Canadian history.[30]

The Redefining Canadian Art History Fellowship Program

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In 2022 ACI launched The Redefining Canadian Art History Fellowship Program to create a more inclusive art history by supporting studies on Canadian and Indigenous artists whose lives and works are underrepresented. The inaugural research fellows were announced in June 2022.

Bibliography of ACI Titles

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Published Online Art Book Titles[31]

SEASON 1: 2013–2014

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  • 2013: Jack Chambers: Life & Work by Mark Cheetham
  • 2014: Kathleen Munn: Life & Work by Georgiana Uhlyarik
  • 2014: Michael Snow: Life & Work by Martha Langford
  • 2014: William Notman: Life & Work by Sarah Parsons
  • 2014: Paul-Émile Borduas: Life & Work by François-Marc Gagnon
  • 2014: Zacharie Vincent: Life & Work by Louise Vigneault

SEASON 2: 2014–2015

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  • 2014: Harold Town: Life & Work by Gerta Moray
  • 2014: Joyce Wieland: Life & Work by Johanne Sloan
  • 2014: Paul Kane: Life & Work by Arlene Gehmacher
  • 2015: Emily Carr: Life & Work by Lisa Baldissera
  • 2015: Yves Gaucher: Life & Work by Roald Nasgaard
  • 2015: Pitseolak Ashoona: Life & Work by Christine Lalonde

SEASON 3: 2015–2016

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  • 2015: Oscar Cahén: Life & Work by Jaleen Grove
  • 2015: Prudence Heward: Life & Work by Julia Skelley
  • 2015: Tom Thomson: Life & Work by David Silcox
  • 2016: Jean Paul Lemieux: Life & Work by Michèle Grandbois
  • 2016: Norval Morrisseau: Life & Work by Carmen Robertson
  • 2016: General Idea: Life & Work by Sarah E.K. Smith

SEASON 4: 2016–2017

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  • 2016: Greg Curnoe: Life & Work by Judith Rodger
  • 2016: Jock Macdonald: Life & Work by Joyce Zemans
  • 2016: Paraskeva Clark: Life & Work by Christine Boyanoski
  • 2017: Shuvinai Ashoona: Life & Work by Nancy Campbell
  • 2017: William Kurelek: Life & Work by Andrew Kear
  • 2017: Louis Nicolas: Life & Work by François-Marc Gagnon

SEASON 5: 2017–2018

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  • 2017: Alex Colville: Life & Work by Ray Cronin
  • 2017: Lionel LeMoine FitzGerald: Life & Work by Michael-Parke Taylor
  • 2017: Helen McNicoll: Life & Work by Samantha Burton
  • 2018: Paterson Ewen: Life & Work by John G. Hatch
  • 2018: Françoise Sullivan: Life & Work by Annie Gerin
  • 2018: Robert Houle: Life & Work by Shirley Madill

SEASON 6: 2018–2019

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  • 2018: Bertram Brooker: Life & Work by James King
  • 2018: Homer Watson: Life & Work by Brian Foss
  • 2018: Molly Lamb Bobak: Life & Work by Michelle Gewurtz
  • 2019: Gershon Iskowitz: Life & Work by Ihor Holubizky
  • 2019: Oviloo Tunnillie: Life & Work by Darlene Wight
  • 2019: Ozias Leduc: Life & Work by Laurier Lacroix

SEASON 7: 2019–2020

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  • 2019: Mary Hiester Reid: Life & Work by Andrea Terry
  • 2019: Agnes Martin: Life & Work by Christopher Régimbal
  • 2019: Jean Paul Riopelle: Life & Work by François-Marc Gagnon
  • 2020: Sorel Etrog: Life & Work by Alma Mikulinsky
  • 2020: Mary Pratt: Life & Work by Ray Cronin
  • 2020: Annie Pootoogook: Life & Work by Nancy G. Campbell

SEASON 8: 2020–2021

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  • 2020: William Brymner: Life & Work by Jocelyn Anderson
  • 2020: Bill Reid: Life & Work by Gerald McMaster
  • 2021: Suzy Lake: Life & Work by Erin Silver
  • 2021: Walter Seymour Allward: Life & Work by Philip Dombowsky
  • 2021: Kazuo Nakamura: Life & Work by John G. Hatch

SEASON 9: 2021–2022

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  • 2021: Maud Lewis: Life & Work by Ray Cronin
  • 2021: Wart Art in Canada: An Illustrated History by Laura Brandon
  • 2022: Kent Monkman: Life & Work by Shirley Madill
  • 2022: Arnaud Maggs: Life & Work by Anne Cibola
  • 2022: Gathie Falk: Life & Work by Michelle Jacques
  • 2022: Ottawa Art & Artists: An Illustrated History by Jim Burant

SEASON 10: 2022–2023

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  • 2022: Jin-me Yoon: Life & Work by Ming Tiampo
  • 2022: Marion Nicoll: Life & Work by Catharine Mastin
  • 2023: Alfred Pellan: Life & Work by Maria Rosa Lehmann

SEASON 11: 2023–2024

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  • 2023: Photography in Canada, 1839–1989: An Illustrated History by Sarah Bassnett and Sarah Parsons
  • 2023: Halifax Art & Artists: An Illustrated History by Ray Cronin
  • 2023: Sophie Pemberton: Life & Work by Kathryn Bridge
  • 2023: Takao Tanabe: Life & Work by Ian Thom
  • 2024: Margaret Watkins: Life & Work by Mary O’Connor

SEASON 12: 2024–2025

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  • 2024: Carl Beam: Life & Work by Anong Beam[32]
  • 2024: Betty Goodwin: Life & Work by Jessica Bradley

References

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  1. ^ a b MacQueen, Ken (17 November 2013). "Meet Canada's first celebrity photographer: William Notman, along with a host of forgotten artists, gets his 21st-century moment". Maclean's. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d Adams, James (22 November 2013). "How the Art Canada Institute is breathing digital life into Canadian art". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  3. ^ a b c Balzer, David (27 November 2013). "Project Illuminates Canadian Art History for 21st Century Audience". Canadian Art. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
  4. ^ a b Star, Christine Sismondo Special to the (2019-04-28). "These books aim to teach Canadians about their own art". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  5. ^ Badin, Paola Aron (2023-11-21). "ACI: The Redefining Canadian Art History Fellowship Program". UAAC-AAUC. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  6. ^ "ACI Projects & Programs". Art Canada Institute - Institut de l’art canadien. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  7. ^ "The Redefining Canadian Art History Fellowship Program". Art Canada Institute - Institut de l’art canadien. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  8. ^ a b White, Murray (21 November 2013). "Art Canada Institute: A true north art history, online and free". The Star. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  9. ^ "Who We Are, ACI Masthead". Art Canada Institute. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
  10. ^ a b Dale, Stephen (13 January 2016). "Tom Thomson: Life and Work brings a Canadian icon into the Digital Age". NGC Magazine. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  11. ^ a b Curcio, Tony (9 December 2013). "The new Art Canada Institute releases free Online Art Books". Graphic Arts Magazine. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
  12. ^ "ACIAC - Quick View". Canada Revenue Agency. Retrieved 26 January 2016.
  13. ^ Baldassi, Julie (25 November 2013). "Bringing Canadian art books online with the Art Canada Institute". Quill and Quire. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  14. ^ Mavrikakis, Nicolas (2020-12-31). "Kent Monkman au MET, un dialogue historique". Le Devoir (in French). Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  15. ^ "The Canadian Online Art Book Project". Art Canada Institute - Institut de l’art canadien. Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  16. ^ "Canadian art e-book series spotlights homegrown artists". CBC News. 13 December 2013. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  17. ^ Whyte, Murray (21 November 2013). "Art Canada Institute: A true north art history, online and free". The Star. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  18. ^ "Canadian Online Art book Project". Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  19. ^ a b c Goodden, Sky (17 December 2013). "Sara Angel Brings Canadian Art History Into the 21st Century". Blouin ArtInfo Canada. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  20. ^ Art Canada Institute, ed. (2020). Revision and resistance: mistikôsiwak (Wooden Boat People) at The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Kent Monkman. Toronto: Art Canada Institute. ISBN 978-1-4871-0225-8. OCLC 1129443203.
  21. ^ Cotter, Holland (Dec 20, 2019). "A Cree Artist Redraws History". The New York Times.
  22. ^ Priegert, Portia (2022-12-12). "Art Books 2022". Galleries West. Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  23. ^ a b "The Art Canada Institute is proud to present public art lectures across Canada on the important figures and icons of Canadian art history". Art Canada Institute - Institut de l’art canadien. Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  24. ^ "Kent Monkman Live: The Making of a Masterpiece". Akimbo. 2024-10-18. Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  25. ^ "Kent Monkman: The Making of a Masterpiece". arthistory.utoronto.ca. 2020-02-06. Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  26. ^ "Kent Monkman: The Making of a Masterpiece". Partners in Art. Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  27. ^ "Art Canada Institute". Canadian Network For Arts & Learning. Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  28. ^ "The Canadian Schools Art Education Program". Art Canada Institute - Institut de l’art canadien. Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  29. ^ "Awards – OAEA". Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  30. ^ "Newsletters". Art Canada Institute - Institut de l’art canadien. Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  31. ^ "Welcome to the Art Canada Institute". Art Canada Institute - Institut de l’art canadien. Retrieved 2024-10-21.
  32. ^ Rutherford, Kate (Sep 30, 2024). "New book explores the art and activism of pioneering Indigenous artist Carl Beam". CBC.
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