NewsFakes & copies
Dealer admits to marketing fraudulent Indigenous wood carvings to Canadian museums and galleries
Works by a non-Indigenous artist known as Harvey John were sold at museum gift shops and galleries as authentic Haida artworks
NewsCanada
Rembrandt loan show will finally launch in Ottawa as National Gallery of Canada reopens to the public
Ontario museums have been shut for months because of surge in Covid cases this April
NewsIndigenous peoples
'I want the UN to come and see what has happened here': Canadian Indian residential school survivor speaks out for victims in his art
Vancouver-based Cowichan/Syilx artist Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun creates new work in memory of dead Indigenous children
NewsCanada
Works by women artists reach new heights in Canadian auction
Two canvases by Carr blew past their estimate to become among the highest auction prices paid for her work, while a painting by 92-year-old Rita Letendre set a record for the artist
NewsPublic art
Vancouver residents launch petition to block Boy Holding a Shark public art ‘monstrosity’
Locals cite concerns about property values, obstructed views of nature and the ethnicity of the artist, but Vancouver Biennial organisers say the work will act as a warning beacon for ocean conservation
NewsEnvironment
Sea junk sculptures draw crowds in Canada for World Oceans Day
After popping up in Vancouver, an installation of figures made from trash travels to Toronto and Quebec City
NewsPrizes
Shortlist announced for the Sobey Art Award, Canada’s largest art prize
Although nominations were open to artists of all ages for the first time, the finalists are all around the same generation
NewsCanada
Haida artist Tamara Bell installs 215 shoes on the steps of Vancouver Art Gallery as a memorial to Indigenous children who died at residential school
The work has become a community shrine and gathering space for mourners after the remains of children as young as three years old were discovered last week using ground-penetrating radar
NewsDesign
Cornelia Hahn Oberlander, landscape architect known as the ‘Queen of Green’, has died, aged 99
Responsible for green spaces that still provide respite to city dwellers around the world, the designer saw her profession as a kind of healing art
NewsExhibitions
Rembrandt’s work joins with art by Black and Indigenous artists at the National Gallery of Canada this spring
A major Old Master show will keep a contemporary perspective with new commissions and acquisitions
NewsVancouver
Arts Umbrella, Canada’s largest culture educator, opens new $27m home in Vancouver
The new education centre on Granville Island with arts, music, film and dance studios, will serve 24,000 student annually
PreviewBiennials & festivals
Toronto’s Contact Photography Festival expands its takeover of public spaces
Month-long event to celebrate its 25th anniversary with a series of installations across the city
NewsCanada
Work for the Weekend: Vancouver unveils sound piece inspired by 1980s working-class pop anthem
The public art work by the local artist Brady Cranfield has been installed in the Vancouver Art Gallery's newly pedestrianised south plaza
NewsMonuments
Stitching together a monument to sick kids, one bead at a time
Anishinaabe artist Nico Williams’s testament to the bravery of children facing difficult illnesses has been created using pieces that record every procedure, test or jab of a needle they undergo
NewsBiennials & festivals
They see ‘dead people’: billboard works removed from Vancouver photography festival after locals complain
The images of sleeping people were too creepy for many residents, in a city where property values are a major concern
NewsObituaries
Donald R. Sobey, one of Canada’s greatest cultural philanthropists, has died, aged 86
The son of the Sobey’s grocery chain founder was a huge supporter of artists, and helped establish the country’s main art prize
NewsOpenings
World's biggest Inuit art collection revealed at Winnipeg's new museum within a museum
Qaumajuq centre aims to reframe Winnipeg Art Gallery’s colonial past with displays of more than 10,000 rarely seen Inuit works
NewsPrizes
Sobey Art Awards open to Canadian artists of all ages for the first time
The country’s biggest art prize gets bigger, expanding its pool of candidates and increasing its total cash offerings
ReviewDesign
A tribute to Cornelia Hahn Oberlander, the landscape architect who shaped Vancouver’s greenspaces
A joint retrospective organised by the West Vancouver Art Museum and Art Gallery of Alberta beautifully expresses the designer’s passion for nature and understanding of community needs
NewsStreet art
Vancouver’s street artists respond to columnist’s graffiti gripes with painted ‘letter to the editor’
A writer’s complaints about downtown tagging were met with accusations of classism—and a new mural
NewsMuseums & Heritage
New Art Gallery of Nova Scotia building is inspired by indigenous Mi’kmaq culture
The winning design is meant to be both a centrepiece of Halifax’s burgeoning waterfront arts district and an earnest symbol of reconciliation, the project leads say
NewsMuseums & Heritage
Never before seen Emily Carr works go from family fireplace to Canadian museum
British Columbia brothers donate paintings their grandmothers acquired to Art Gallery of Greater Victoria
NewsAuthentication
Will a ‘Shakespearean tragedy’ find a happy ending in Canada?
After years of research, the only portrait of the playwright possibly painted during his lifetime still hangs in limbo—but perhaps not for long
NewsMuseums
Chair of Montreal Museum of Fine Arts steps down as former director sues over unfair dismissal
Michel de la Chenelière is not seeking term renewal as controversy over Nathalie Bondil's departure rumbles on
NewsCanada
Mural memorialises Vancouver’s lost historic Black neighbourhood
Hogan’s Alley was once a thriving hub of Black Canadian culture, before it was demolished like so many communities in the name of urban renewal
NewsMuseums & Heritage
Chinese Canadian Museum opens in Vancouver with pop-up show centred on food
The institution is looking for a permanent home in the city’s historic Chinatown
NewsIndigenous art
Haida artist Bill Reid honoured on Canadian $2 coin
The new “toonie” features an image of Reid’s striking Xhuwaji/Haida Grizzly Bear
NewsCanada
Museums halt Jon Rafman shows after allegations are made online
Several women have accused the artist of misconduct, but Rafman disagrees with how their interactions have been represented
NewsMuseums
Montreal Museum of Fine Arts placed on 'concerned status' over sacking of director
Canada Council for the Arts will monitor the crisis following Nathalie Bondil’s dismissal, which could put the museum's public funding at risk
NewsAuctions
Colville’s Dog and Bridge has its day at Heffel’s live sale in Toronto
But fewer than ten buyers physically attended the auction, with most bidding done over the phone and in the “digital salesroom”
NewsControversies
Musée d'Orsay cuts ties with Montreal Museum of Fine Arts over sacking of director Nathalie Bondil
International museum leaders speak out against the treatment of "the best, most dynamic, and most innovative art museum director in North America"
NewsCanada
Art Gallery of Ontario reopens with other Canadian museums to follow this month
Institutions across the country are cautiously welcoming back visitors
NewsIndigenous art
Kent Monkman issues apology for painting that depicts the 'sexual assault' of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
After outcries against the work on social media, the Cree artist says that the image "failed" in its message to address the victimisation of Indigenous women
NewsCanada
Vancouver street artists provide coronavirus advice to Canada’s most vulnerable communities
City council is collaborating with mural makers to paint storefronts that have closed due to Covid-19 in a neighbourhood already suffering from the opioid crisis
Newscoronavirus
Market for Inuit art faces financial deep freeze after Arctic cruises put on hold
As coronavirus brings recreational tourism to a halt, artists in Canada's Nunavut territory say the economic fallout has the power to "crash the community"
NewsPrizes
Citing Covid-19, Canada's Sobey Art Award increases prize to almost $500,000 and shares it among 25 longlisted artists
The Canadian "Turner Prize" made the one-off decision to reflect the "profound impact" that the pandemic is having on artists' livelihoods
NewsObituaries
Canadian Modernist painter Gordon Smith has died, aged 100
The Vancouver-based artist, one of the last of a generation that shaped the city’s mid-century cultural scene, was known for his monumental abstract canvases inspired by nature
NewsVenice Biennale 2021
Stan Douglas to represent Canada at 2021 Venice Biennale
The multimedia artist’s sci-fi epic Doppelgänger from the last international exhibition is due to be shown in New York and London this month
NewsPrizes
Stephanie Comilang claims Canada’s Sobey Art Award
The Toronto- and Berlin-based artist expressed relief after winning C$100,000 contemporary art prize: "I don’t have to worry financially now"
NewsMontreal Museum of Fine Arts
Montreal Museum of Fine Arts offers ‘a contemporary gaze’ at ancient objects in a new wing
Museum will juxtapose archaeological finds with recent pieces in an “Art of One World” gallery
PreviewExhibitions
‘Extraordinary’ Rubens show opens at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto
The blockbuster exhibition gathers early works by the Flemish master from museums in North America and Europe
NewsPrizes
Canada’s largest art prize, the Sobey Art Award, heads west
An exhibition of the shortlisted artists is now on view at Edmonton’s Art Gallery of Alberta
PreviewBiennials & festivals
The first Toronto Biennial takes a long view of human relations
Among the highlights of the city-wide exhibition is a “panoramic pantomime” of Cook’s Pacific expeditions by the New Zealand artist Lisa Reihana
NewsObituaries
Vancouver street photographer Fred Herzog has died, age 88
The German-born Canadian captured a view of the city that has since been lost, but he did not receive major recognition until late in life
NewsPublic art
Vancouver mural memorialises First Nations’ aide to stranded Indian immigrants
The work was unveiled as the name of a Conservative politician behind the Komagata Maru incident was removed from the federal building on which it is painted
NewsArt market
Contested export of a Caillebotte painting raises questions about Canadian cultural law
A Canadian court recently overturned a ruling on the "national importance" of the French Impressionist's work, sold at Heffel Auction House in 2016
News
Multi-million-dollar Matisse fails to find a buyer at Toronto auction
The French Modern master’s oil painting Femme assise sur un balcon was withdrawn from a Canadian sale after bidding stalled below the reserve price
NewsMuseums & Heritage
The kids are alright: Art Gallery of Ontario offers free admission for visitors 25 and under, and reduced yearly passes for all
The Canadian institution aims to double its membership and expand its audience with one-year pilot programme
NewsMuseums & Heritage
Canadian Museums Association launches $1m programme to recognise indigenous culture
The initiative is part of a broader reconciliation effort by the government
PreviewExhibitions
Ai Weiwei show brings out tensions between Canada and China
Survey at Gardiner Museum ranges from artist’s broken Han Dynasty urn to zodiac signs
NewsMuseums & Heritage
After a decade of delays, Vancouver Art Gallery gets $40m boost for new building
The local philanthropic Chan family has reinvigorated the long-awaited expansion with an “unprecedented” gift
NewsArt market
Record set in Canada for Nobel Prize-winning doctor and artist Frederick Banting
A painting of the University of Toronto lab where he co-discovered insulin goes for ten times its high estimate in Toronto
NewsAuctions
Nobel Prize-winning doctor’s painting of the lab where he discovered insulin goes on sale in Toronto
Dr Frederick Banting wanted to take up art full-time, but he was killed in a plane crash during the Second World War
NewsPrizes
Kapwani Kiwanga takes home the Sobey Art award
Canada’s top prize for artists under 40 was doubled this yearto C$100,000
News
MoCA Toronto set to open in new industrial home that hosts both art and artists
New works by Barbara Kruger, Tania Bruguera and Awol Erizku will be presented in Canadian museum's first year
NewsSocial history
Canada struggles with monuments tied to colonialism
Echoing a conflict in the US, the nation contends with calls to remove controversial memorials
NewsPublic art
How a chain-link mosque at the Vancouver Biennale became a community hub
Saudi artist Ajlan Gharem's installation stands as an example of cultural exchange as diplomatic tensions break out between Canada and Saudi Arabia
NewsArtists
Art installation in Canada helps rebuild burnt-out library in Iraq
A project at the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto challenges the public to help restore a Baghdad art college’s collection
NewsArt theft
Banksy print snatched from Toronto show
The work Trolley Hunters went missing during the set up for the ‘unauthorised’ exhibition
NewsControversies
Once bitten, twice shy: Canadian artist caught using comedians' photos without permission promises no more funny business
Despite controversy over public art project in Calgary, Derek Michael Besant has been commissioned to create a similar work in Ottawa
NewsAuctions
Tom Thomson sketch hidden in Canadian basement sells for C$480,000 at auction, more than double its high estimate
The work’s owner, a retired nurse, chose not to attend the sale in person due to nerves “in case it was worth something”
NewsAuctions
Stored in a basement, Canadian woman’s painting turns out to be Tom Thomson sketch
The work is due to be auctioned in Toronto with a high estimate of $135,000—and will fund a Mediterranean cruise for the owner and her friend
NewsConservation & Preservation
Canada’s 1950s Venice Biennale pavilion gets a facelift
The upgrade to the Modernist building and its surrounding landscape has resulted in a new visitor route planned for the Giardini
NewsDeaccessioning
Anonymous donor steps in to pay hefty penalty for the National Gallery of Canada’s botched Chagall sale
The rushed deaccessioning—to fund the acquisition of another work from neighbouring Quebec—raised a storm of criticism
NewsExhibitions
Douglas Coupland’s work in plastic is fantastic
The writer and artist unveils an ecological work inspired by the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and a 3D-printed national portrait of Canada
News
Ottawa Art Gallery grows five times bigger in time for its 30th birthday
The free-entry museum of Canadian art was initially scheduled to be completed last year
PreviewExhibitions
The emperor strikes back: Montreal show revisits the splendour and romanticism of Napoleon’s court
More than a display of splendour, the exhibition examines how the court functioned as an institution of propaganda, shaping and promoting images of imperial power
BlogIn the frame
Trippy travel and friendly felines at the Aga Khan
AnalysisAmerican art
Native American artists garner recognition—at last
US and Canadian institutions are rethinking their approach to contemporary indigenous art
NewsVenice Biennale 2019
Canada announces first presentation of Inuit art for 2019 Venice Biennale
Video collective Isuma will tell story of indigenous culture in Canadian pavilion
NewsMonuments
Canada’s first national Holocaust memorial opens in Ottawa
Daniel Libeskind-designed monument in concrete and metal has the shape of a distorted Star of David
ArchiveProvenance research
Canada under pressure over potential Nazi loot
Montreal museum returns painting amid growing calls to fund provenance research and return disputed works
ArchiveAsian art
Maynards looks East as Canadian auction house targets new Asian collectors
Striking while the market is hot
ArchiveJeff Wall
Jeff Wall: Year-long exposures at Tate Modern
An overview of his career and a major new work
ArchivePublishing
The ex-ceo of Phillips de Pury talks about her plans to create a group of art publications and to make an “Art Davos”
Louise MacBain: “a Bloomberg of the arts”
ArchiveNational Gallery of Canada
After MassMoca, Dia, Tate Modern—Shawinigan's new exhibition space
Offshoot of the National Gallery of Canada opens in rural Quebec
ArchiveExhibitions
Canadian war art on tour
“Battle lines: Canadian artists in the field, 1917-19” is on show now at Canada House
CommentSocial history
Statues are part of history, but do a poor job of recording it
Monuments tell us more about those who set them up than those they represent, says Classics professor Matthew Sears
Matthew Sears