The Art Gallery of Ontario

An enterprising group of private citizens founded the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) in 1900 and it was known as the Art Museum of Toronto. In 1919, it was named Art Gallery of Toronto and finally, in 1966, it got its present day name. It is located on Dundas Street West, between McCaul Street and Beverley Street. Spread over 45,000 square meters, the AGO holds the distinction for being the 10th largest art museum in North America.

The collection at AGO holds more than 79,000 works covering the 1^st century to the present. The gallery’s collection of Canadian art is the largest in the world tracing the nation’s heritage and development since its pre-Confederate days. More than half of AGO’s collection is made up of the work’s of Canadian artists and includes notable artists like Lucius O’Brien, Cornelius Krieghoff, Tom Thomson, James Wilson Morrice, David Milne, the Group of Seven, Paul-Emile Borduas, Emily Carr, and Kenojuak Ashevak.

The museum’s collection of European art is just as impressive since it has masterpieces of Medieval and Renaissance decorative arts. Outside Europe and the United States, this collection is probably the most important collection of its kind in the world. You will find works of celebrated artists such as Thomas Gainsborough, Anthony van Dyck, Claude Monet, Auguste Rodin, Rembrandt van Rijn, Paul Cézanne, Vincent van Gogh, Emile Antoine Bourdelle, Pablo Picasso, and René Magritte.

The AGO also has one of the most comprehensive collections of African art in North America and contemporary art collection spanning from 1960 to the present, including works by Andy Warhol, Jenny Holzer, David Altmejd, Claes Oldenburg, Francoise Sullivan, Shirley Wiitasalo, Mona Hatoum, Doris Salcedo, Gerhard Richter, Cindy Sherman, Tino Sehgal, Richard Serra, and Kara Walker.

Finally worth a mention is the collection of works by the British sculptor Henry Moore, which also happens to be the largest public collection of his work on this planet. In fact, his bronze work, titled “Two Large Forms” (1966–1969) can be seen at the north façade of the museum at the intersection of McCaul and Dundas Streets.

Since it is one of the leading art museums in Canada, it also hosts a large number of important and prestigious exhibitions. Some of the major exhibitions it has presented over the years are “Emily Carr: New Perspectives on a Canadian Icon, 2007,” “Andy Warhol/Supernova: Stars, Deaths and Disasters 1962–1964, 2006,” “Catherine the Great: Arts for the Empire – Masterpieces from the Hermitage Museum, Russia, 2005,” and “Voyage into Myth: French Painting from Gauguin to Matisse, from the Hermitage Museum, 2002.”

Recently, the AGO has been given a facelift by celebrated architect Frank Gehry and the museum seems to have acquired almost 50 percent more gallery space. There is also a new restaurant on site, “FRANK,” and a casual café as well for visitors. Towards the end of your trip, you can browse through the new multi-level shop that has interesting books, jewelry, and prints, and buy some unique gifts for your friends and family.