Ian Thom - Order of Canada. Author. Curator. Nice Guy

On Canada Day curator and author Ian Thom, was one of 60 people named a Member of the Order of Canada. The announcement was made Wednesday, July 1st, by Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, Governor General of Canada. Mr. Thom will receive the award at a future ceremony.

The Order of Canada is the highest honourary distinction in the country. It recognizes exceptional lifetime contributions to Canada and to humanity at large. Ian Thom is renowned for his contributions as a curator of Canadian art, and as an advocate for British Columbia artists.

Mr. Thom was a guest speaker at the McMichael at the Canada Day public opening of the exhibition he has curated, when the Governor General made her announcement of his appointment. He returned to the Vancouver Art Gallery the following day.

Challenging Traditions: Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast is both the name of the gallery’s new exhibition and the title of a companion book. Written by Mr. Thom and co-published by the McMichael Canadian Art Collection and Douglas & McIntyre, this publication explores the career, working methods, and philosophies of up-and-coming artists originating from Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, Kwakw a k a ’wakw, Nuu-chah-nulth and other First Nations tribes of the Pacific Northwest Coast. Ian Thom discusses the Challenging Traditions exhibition at The McMichael on Youtube here.

The exhibition, Challenging Traditions: Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast, brings Mr. Thom’s magnificent publication to life. It showcases a collection of over seventy pieces of contemporary art that are featured in the book and investigates how artists are drawing inspiration from history and grappling with the challenges of interpreting traditional design and transforming it into modern-day Northwest Coast art. The exhibition continues at the McMichael until September 20, 2009.

Responsible for organizing more than 100 exhibitions over his twenty-year curatorial career at the Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver-born Ian M. Thom is the resident expert on British Columbia’s art and artists. Mr. Thom is also a prolific writer, publishing numerous books on popular artists: Maxwell Bates, Alistair Bell, B.C. Binning, Franklin Carmichael, Emily Carr, C.J. Collings, Robert Davidson, Gathie Falk, Lionel LeMoine FitzGerald, Clarence Gagnon, Lawren Harris, Edwin Holgate, E.J. Hughes, Ann Kipling, Arthur Lismer, David Milne, Jack Shadbolt, Gordon Smith, Takao Tanabe, Andy Warhol, and many more. Prior to joining the Vancouver Art Gallery in 1988, he worked as the McMichael Canadian Art Collection’s Curator of Collections, and at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria as Chief Curator. Thom holds a BA and MA in Fine Arts from the University of British Columbia.

CUTLINE: Ian Thom signing copies of his new book "Challenging Traditions: Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast" at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection in Kleinburg, Ontario (Toronto). Mr. Thom was at the gallery to open the new exhibition which the book accompanies. Photo by Stephen Weir

Art Patrons admire this huge red cedar mask carved by Beau Dick. The piece is part of the Challenging Traditions: Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast exhibition curated by Ian Thom.

Canada Day Photo Op at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection

Canada Day Celebration at the McMichael – large crowd expected at opening of the Challenging Traditions: Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast exhibition. Plus Charlie Pachter’s The Painted Flag will be on view, performances by musical groups, First Nations dancers, and more…

CANADA DAY PHOTO OP

June 25, 2009 Kleinburg, ON — The McMichael Canadian Art Collection is expecting a very large crowd to be on hand July 1st – Canada Day – for the official opening of the Challenging Traditions: Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast exhibition. Canada Day celebrations at the McMichael will include musical and dance performances by First Nations artists and the installation of The Painted Flag, the iconic painting of the Canadian flag by well-known Toronto artist Charles Pachter.

Canada Day at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection begins at 10:00 am and runs until 6:00 pm – with the outdoor launch ceremony and formal remarks occurring at 2:00 pm with gallery Executive Director & CEO Thomas Smart, curator/author Ian M. Thom, and McMichael Board of Trustees Chair, Noreen Taylor. There will be an outdoor cash bar and barbeque, a book signing by author and exhibition curator, Ian Thom, First Nations music by Eddy Robinson and Morningstar River drummers and singers, dance performances by Dancers of Damelahamid (beginning at noon), and the gallery’s latest art purchase, Charlie Pachter’s The Painted Flag, will be on display in the McMichael Grand Hall.

Challenging Traditions: Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast, organized by the McMichael and guest curated by Thom, features seventy-five contemporary works of art created by forty of Canada’s most talented First Nations artists living in Canada’s Northwest Coast. The exhibition runs until September 20th, 2009 and will then travel on a domestic and international tour. Tour details will be announced shortly.

Challenging Traditions: Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast will be a landmark exhibition and publication (co-published by the McMichael Canadian Art Collection and Douglas & McIntyre) that examines the rich diversity and creativity of art in this region of Canada. In the last forty years, the art of the Northwest Coast has re-emerged as one of the most vibrant varied and expressive art forms practised by any of the indigenous peoples of the world. The forty artists included in the exhibition have been selected by Ian Thom, the foremost curator and author of historical and contemporary Northwest Coast Canadian art. Each artist has built a substantial and important career. They address, in their own ways, an important visual and cultural tradition in a unique, personal voice.

One of the many artists represented in the Challenging Traditions exhibition and publication is Don Yeomans, a Haida artist from B.C.’s Northwest Coast whose works are installed in the University of British Columbia’s Museum of Anthropology, the Royal British Columbia Museum, the Canadian Museum of Civilization, and the Seattle Art Museum. The public gallery has commissioned a full-scale totem pole by this artist that will be installed in the Grand Hall. The official ceremony to celebrate the unveiling of this artwork will take place at the McMichael later this summer.

The McMichael recently acquired The Painted Flag, the iconic painting by well-known Toronto artist Charles Pachter, for its permanent collection. The artwork will be on view to the public for the first time on Canada Day, July 1st, as part of the gallery’s opening celebration of the summer exhibition season. The artist will be attending as a special guest at the gallery on Canada Day.

The timing of this art purchase is ideal as the McMichael gallery prepares to open Charles Pachter and Margaret Atwood: The Journals of Susanna Moodie, on July 18th. This exhibition is organized by the McMichael and curated by Chris Finn. It will explore the unique collaboration between Pachter and Atwood and will include a collection of approximately thirty original prints with the accompanying poems from Atwood and Pachter’s livre d’artiste, a limited-edition artist’s book. This exhibit runs until October 11th, 2009.

Also opening on July 18th is Diana Thorneycroft: Canada, Myth and History, organized by the McMichael and curated by Sharona Adamowicz-Clements. Winnipeg artist Diana Thorneycroft is known for creating provocative and controversial photographs that challenge her audience’s viewing experience. Her seemingly comical images composed of innocent subjects—dolls and toy figurines—set against the landscape paintings created by Canada’s most beloved artists reveal, upon a closer examination, a deeper and darker meaning. Through her compositions of modern-day life and historical events set against the landscapes of the Group of Seven and their contemporaries, Thorneycroft explores notions of Canadian identity and cultural ideologies, while deconstructing mythological narratives. This exhibit will remain on display until November 29th, 2009.

About the Gallery

The McMichael Canadian Art Collection is an agency of the Government of Ontario and acknowledges the support of the Ministry of Culture. It is the foremost venue in the country showcasing the Group of Seven and their contemporaries. In addition to touring exhibitions, its permanent collection consists of more than 5,500 artworks, including paintings by the Group of Seven and their contemporaries, First Nations and Inuit artists. The gallery is located on Islington Avenue, north of Major Mackenzie Drive in Kleinburg, and is open daily from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. On Canada Day the gallery will be open from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm. Admission is $15 for adults, $12 for seniors/students and $30 for families. There is a $5 fee for parking. For more information about the gallery, visit www.mcmichael.com.


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For further information or to receive high resolution photographs, contact:

Stephen Weir, Publicist
Gallery: 905.893.1121 ext. 2529
Toronto Office: 416.489.5868 / Cell: 416.801.3101
sweir@mcmichael.com

CUTLINE: CHARLIE PACHTER'S CANADIAN FLAG WAS RECENTLY PURCHASED BY THE McMICHAEL. IT GOES ON DISPLAY JULY 1.

Media Preview: June 25th, see the Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast exhibition before it opens

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MEDIA PREVIEW

A McMichael Exclusive! Exhibition of Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast will be on display this summer.

When: Thursday, June 25, 2009, 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Where: McMichael Canadian Art Collection, 10365 Islington Avenue, Kleinburg (just north of the Major Mackenzie Drive, Islington Avenue intersection)

Why: Challenging Traditions: Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast, organized by the McMichael Canadian Art Collection and guest-curated by Vancouver-born Ian M. Thom – the resident expert on British Columbia’s art and artists – will be exclusively shown at the McMichael this summer before it goes on tour. The McMichael and Douglas & McIntyre have co-published a landmark book by the same name, written by Thom. The forty artists included in the exhibition have been selected by Ian Thom and each artist has built a substantial and important career. They address, in their own ways, an important visual and cultural tradition in a unique, personal voice. Lastly, and perhaps most controversially, each artist produces work of remarkable depth, beauty and quality. Moreover, the curator has attempted, wherever possible, to select recent, newly created work in direct consultation with the artists themselves.

Who: Meet exhibition curator and author, Ian M. Thom; meet McMichael Executive Director and CEO, Tom Smart.

What: This summer, the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, renowned for exclusively showcasing Canadian art, will feature an extraordinary exhibition of Northwest Coast contemporary art. Challenging Traditions: Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast explores the re-emergence of the art of the Northwest Coast. View over seventy works by 21st-century contemporary First Nations artists who have taken traditional Northwest Coast artistic practices and infused them with modern cultural influences.

Challenging Traditions: Contemporary First Nations Art of the Northwest Coast has been financially assisted by the Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund, a program of the Government of Ontario through the Ministry of Culture, administered by the Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund Corporation. The publication and accompanying curatorial research has been generously funded by the Audain Foundation.

About the Gallery

The McMichael Canadian Art Collection is an agency of the Government of Ontario and acknowledges the support of the Ministry of Culture. It is the foremost venue in the country showcasing the Group of Seven and their contemporaries. In addition to touring exhibitions, its permanent collection consists of more than 5,500 artworks, including paintings by the Group of Seven and their contemporaries, First Nations, and Inuit artists.

The gallery is located on Islington Avenue, north of Major Mackenzie Drive in Kleinburg, and is open daily from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Admission is $15 for adults, $12 for seniors/students and $30 for families. There is a $5 fee for parking. For more information about the gallery visit www.mcmichael.com.

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Image credit: Bill Henderson (Kwakwaka’wakw, b.1950), Sun Mask,2007–2008, yellow cedar, cedar bark rope, acrylic, 147.3 x 147.3 x 9.1 cm, Private Collection, Courtesy of Inuit Gallery of Vancouver Ltd. Photograph by Kenji Nagai

To RSVP, for further information or to receive high resolution photographs, contact:

Stephen Weir, Publicist
Gallery: 905.893.1121 ext. 2529
Toronto Office: 416.489.5868
Cell: 416.801.3101
sweir@mcmichael.com, stephen@stephenweir.com