ANNUAL REPORT 2017 CONTENTS BOARD OF DIRECTORS 3 MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR AND PRESIDENT & CEO 4 2017 EXHIBITIONS 6 EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTS 7 PROGRAMS AND EDUCATION HIGHLIGHTS 11 REPORT FROM THE CHAIR, VOLUNTEER COMMITTEE 15 DONOR SUPPORT AND SPONSORSHIP 16 ACQUISITIONS 19 AGH BY THE NUMBERS 22 Cover image: Joseph Hartman (Canadian b. 1978), John Scott (detail), 2014 (printed 2015), chromogenic 2 print, ed. 1/9. Art Gallery of Hamilton, Purchase, Permanent Collection Fund, 2015. © Joseph Hartman BOARD OF DIRECTORS Gary Graham, Chair David Kissick, Secretary-Treasurer Luigi V. Celli, Past Cair Dan Banko Laurie Davidson Dilk Dhanapala Adrian Duyzer Scott Galbraith Craig Laviolette James Lefebvre Lisa Marcuzzi John Noestheden Maria Pearson Joe Pietrantonio Donna Skelly Dr. Leonard Waverman, PhD Hanno Weinberger, Chair, AGH Volunteer Committee Shelley Falconer, President & CEO, ex officio 3 MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR AND PRESIDENT & CEO In our second year of implementing the four key priorities of the Art Gallery of Hamilton (AGH) Strategic Plan, we are pleased to highlight our key achievements in each of these areas, as outlined below: 1. Renewed focus on the Collection and Related Programs Our exhibition and programming offerings in 2017 were robust indeed, and we were particularly proud of our efforts introducing our visitors to talented Indigenous artists through such exhibitions as Expanding the Circle: Robert Davidson and the Ancient Language of Haida Art; Kenojuak Ashevak & Tim Pitsiulak: Drawing Life; Barry Pottle: The Awareness Series; Carving Home: The Chedoke Collection of Inuit Art; and Shelley Niro:1779, with the Pottle, Niro, and Chedoke exhibitions all prominently featuring works from our Permanent Collection. Other exhibitions showcasing works from our Collection included Collection Classics; Evolution of Form: 150 Years of Sculpture from the Collection; Staging Abstraction: Paintings from the Collection; Nature and Man Revealed: The Mr. and Mrs. H.J.M. Watson Collection of British Drawings; The Living Room: Subject. Object. Verb.; and Behind the Scene: The 19th-Century Studio Reimagined. Regional artists were celebrated in such exhibitions as Abedar Kamgari: The Journey West; Joseph Hartman: The Artist’s Studio; The Living Room: Self Made: Stylo Starr’s 89 Dames; Sara Angelucci: Piece Work; and The Shifting City. Saga of a City: Hamilton at 200 Years helped us celebrate our city’s bicentennial. In 2017, 43 new aquisitions were added to the Collection including works by important artists such as: Carl Schaefer, Laura Muntz, Dorian Fitzgerald, and 12 Inuit sculptures from the personal collection of Jules Lebow covering a full spectrum of historical, Inuit and contemporary art. 2. Community Engagement We held our first Town Hall in May, inviting the community to share their thoughts about the AGH; we are grateful to those who took the time to attend and have since enacted some of the suggestions presented. Working closely with community partners allowed us to present exhibitions such as OUT THERE: Hamilton’s Public Art Process; I Have A Right… J’ai un droit…; Central Ontario Art Association 2017 Annual Juried Exhibition: Artistic Meanderings; and Women’s Art Association of Hamilton 121st Annual Juried Exhibition. Thanks to multi-year funding from the federal government’s Canada Cultural Spaces Fund, we were able to complete projects that improved visitor experience and accessibility, including improvements to all family washrooms; wireless and hearing assist capabilities added to the building’s public address systems; and others. Throughout this Annual Report, we invite you to take note of our visitor feedback collected during 2017. 4 3. Learning through Art Hand-in-hand with the Gallery’s commitment to a renewed focus on the Collection and engaging the community, the Gallery’s programming and education activities grew in number and variety. New initiatives included partnerships with Hamilton Wentworth District School Board alternative education programs; a new iteration of Artful Moments for persons with dementia living at home and their caregivers; day-time film screenings at the Lincoln Alexander Centre; and a return of Photophobia. Teachers drove an increase in extended workshops and special programs, highlighting a demand for deeper interaction with the Gallery during school visits. Many adult talks and workshops were at capacity, as were most summer and PA day camps. 4. Long-Term Sustainability Canada Cultural Spaces Fund allowed the Gallery to improve key environmental systems, reducing the facility operational costs while continuing to safeguard the Permanent Collection and ensure the comfort of staff and visitors. The Gallery’s new website was launched on July 1, moving the AGH toward more cost-effective and robust digital communications. Working closely with our government, foundation, corporate, Member and individual partners, the Gallery continued to investigate strategies to stabilize its funding and ensure its long-term economic impact on Hamilton and the region. According to the TREIM Model, the AGH has contributed $17 Million to the local economy and $23.4 million to the wider province in terms of economic impact. Implementing these priorities requires an ongoing commitment from our dedicated staff, board members, governors, volunteers and partners. We are grateful to our 2017 sponsors: the City of Hamilton, the Ontario Arts Council, the Canada Council for the Arts, ArcelorMittal Dofasco, BMO, Incite Foundation for the Arts, Orlick Industries, RBC, Joey & Toby Tanenbaum, and TD Bank Group. The Art Gallery of Hamilton is at its strongest when we work together and dream together. Thank you for being part of our family as we celebrate over a century of bringing art and community together. Gary Graham Chair, Board of Directors Shelley Falconer President & CEO 5 2017 EXHIBITIONS Saga of a City: Hamilton at 200 Years The Living Room: Self Made: Stylo Starr’s 89 Dames 9 April 2016 – 19 March 2017 17 June – 31 December 2017 Co-curated by Devin Therien and Bill Manson Curated by Tor Lukasik-Foss Unbuilt Hamilton Behind the Scene: The 19th-Century 24 September 2016 – 12 February 2017 Studio Reimagined Guest Curated by Mark Osbaldeston 28 June 2017 – 14 January 2018 Curated by Devin Therien The Living Room: Subject. Object. Verb. 15 October 2016 – 21 May 2017 Carving Home: The Chedoke Collection of Inuit Art Curated by Tor Lukasik-Foss 28 June 2017 – 14 January 2018 Guest Curated by Dr. Nancy Campbell Last Folio: Yuri Dojc 22 October 2016 – 14 May 2017 Barry Pottle: The Awareness Series Curated by Melissa Bennett 28 June 2017 – 14 January 2018 Curated by Alana Traficante Expanding the Circle: Robert Davidson and the Ancient Language of Haida Art Kenojuak Ashevak & Tim Pitsiulak: Drawing Life 11 February – 28 May 2017 28 June 2017 – 14 January 2018 Organized and circulated in part by the Curated by Tobi Bruce McCord Museum, Montreal OUT THERE: Hamilton’s Public Art Process Sara Angelucci: Piece Work 8 September 2017 – 11 February 2018 11 February – 14 May 2017 Organized in cooperation with the City of Hamilton’s Curated by Alana Traficante Tourism and Culture Division Women’s Art Association of Hamilton Shelley Niro: 1779 121st Annual Juried Exhibition 20 October 2017 – 18 March 2018 18 February – May 7 2017 Co-curated by Melissa Bennett and Alana Traficante Nature and Man Revealed: The Mr. and Mrs. Abedar Kamgari: The Journey West H.J.M. Watson Collection of British Drawings 20 October 2017 – 18 March 2018 1 April – 8 October 2017 Co-curated by Melissa Bennett and Alana Traficante Curated by Devin Therien I Have A Right… J’ai un droit… Central Ontario Art Association 2017 24 November 2017 – 11 February 2018 Annual Juried Exhibition Organized by Culture for Kids in the Arts 13 May – 16 July 2017 Joseph Hartman: The Artist’s Studio 17 June – 31 December 2017 Co-curated by Melissa Bennett and Alana Traficante In 2017, 37 AGH works from the Collection went on loan - as far as Lugano, Switzerland (Edwin Weeks, The Last Voyage). 6 EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTS Expanding the Circle: Robert Davidson and the Ancient Language of Haida Art 11 February – 28 May 2017 Just off Canada’s North Pacific coast is a series of islands called Haida Gwaii, which have been home to the Haida people for more than 5,000 years. For generations, this Indigenous culture has produced some of the world’s most visually stunning and intellectually complex forms of art. On their lush island home off the Northwest Coast, the Haida fashioned a world of outstanding artistic expression, one that sustained them through near annihilation in the late 19th century. This exhibition presented over 70 works that explore themes fundamental to Haida life and culture including potlatch ceremonies, performance, the power of transformation, and ceremonial art. Photo: Mike Lalich “I love this Gallery! I didnt realize that you had some famous paintings by artists like James Tissot and Antoine Vollon.” - Ann from Thorold 7 Sara Angelucci: Piece Work 11 February – 14 May 2017 Born in Hamilton to Italian immigrant parents, Sara Angelucci is well known for autobiographical work in a range of media including still photography, moving image, sonic performance and installation. For the exhibition Piece Work, Angelucci revisits her mother’s history as a garment worker to produce a new installation in three parts, in collaboration with contemporary workers at Hamilton’s Coppley Apparel. Coppley has operated continuously in the same white stone building on York Boulevard since 1883 and has employed every wave of new immigrants to the city, including Angelucci’s late mother Nina, who arrived in Hamilton in 1957. In Piece Work, the factory represents more than a long-standing local business or the artist’s familial history. It is a capsule of the city’s social history, and the diverse communities that together contribute to the fabric of our industrial roots. Through this exhibition, Angelucci presents a series of poignant new artworks that bring our attention back to the experience of the worker - in visual, auditory, and symbolic ways.