MONET: A Bridge to Modernity.
As of February 16, 2016, this Bridge is closed...
Star Trek: The Starfleet Academy Experience is here in Ottawa, its first stop in North America.
Set phasers to fun because this visit is Spock-tacular! On opening weekend, this pricey exhibit definitely had busy spots but was absolutely worth it.
As cadet recruits to Starfleet Academy, trainees are exposed to seven branches of Starfleet: Communications, Medical, Science, Navigation, Engineering, Tactical and Command. Using individualized scanner bracelets, there are a variety of challenges, simulations and/or quizzes that the recruit must perform in order find their best fit in Starfleet. It is a great opportunity to diagnose an ill Klingon, navigate through a maze of exploding nebulas and enemy ships, get transported and use your phaser to rack up points.
The exhibit is also filled with loads of props from the movie and tv sets, such as costumes, models, phasers and even *gasp* dilithium crystals. The simulations are fun and you can even create your own alien face. And nobody knows the tribbles we've seen....
The Kobayashi Maru is the final brutal training challenge for the cadet: save the disabled namesake ship while fending off Klingon attack and maintaining life support, power and shield of the Enterprise. The mock-up Enterprise deck is a decent replica and adds to the tension of this final challenge. There are plenty of photo opportunities here!
Then, at the end of the training exercise, using your bracelet, your results are tabulated and your career in Starfleet awaits! Our tally? We have two commanders, three engineers and a communications specialist.
(Warp)Drive over and check out this engaging exhibit!
A master of colours and an artist with a deep love of his Dene culture, Alex Javier uses a brush to share his love of the land and sea and his people with Canada and the world. His art is instantly recognizable with his deeply spiritual circles enclosing rich swirling colours and fluid shapes, to very large works with enigmatic abstract themes. His subject matter varies with themes from nature (Birds Chirping on an Island, Land of Beauty and Joy, Mother Earth), to his faith (Our Lady of the Teepee, Sacred Heart, The Sky Beings) and even to the painful (Indian Residential School, O'Kanada, Indian Mother with Crying Boy). Of course, there is also the massive and magnificent Morning Star which graces the ceiling at the end of the Grand Hall at the Canadian Museum of History!
At the start of this exhibit there is a wonderful wall of his painted circles sprinkled colourfully across several walls. And I'm glad this was at the very beginning because this will not be your typical exhibit, with the standard portraits or seasonal landscapes. Oh no, such paintings and themes will not be so obvious and some carry great spiritual significance between heaven and earth and even longings of the created. The exhibit contains examples of his early works even while in residential school and some portraits, but mainly the swirling mysterious art for which he is famous. Some favourites are here: Sacred Heart, Spring Equinox, Earth and Sky, Up Towards Sky Eagle, Saklulay (Sun Rays), O'Kanada and Indian Mother with Crying Boy. His circles remind me of a solar eclipse minus the moon (!) while still beholding all the colours and shapes of a blazing corona with flares and fiery tendrils, especially Saklulay and O'Kanada.
Right off the bat, what I love about his art is that he is unafraid to be himself with his unconventional compositions and views. Not conforming to perhaps what is common and safe artistically, he embraces his culture and people and even the pain he has experienced to strive for a brighter future for all the First Nations People of Canada. (On a deep personal note, this struck a chord with me, since my father survived residential school along with his brothers and sisters.) I was able to attend his talk on Saturday afternoon, November 26 and the auditorium was packed and rapt. He spoke with love about nature and his dreams for his family and their future. I was glad to meet him and shake his hand!
I applaud his courage to stand up for his people and to use his brush to share his love of the land and culture with others. This exhibit is truly a must-see!
Above: An oryx skeleton
LIFE IN ORBIT AT THE AVIATION MUSEUM
GLADIATORS AT THE CANADIAN WAR MUSEUM
ART 2017 at the National Gallery of Canada, a tribute to artistic excellence.
Vigee Le Brun was a French female portrait artist in the 18th century and is famed for being a painter of Marie Antoinette. This exhibit, featuring dozens of her paintings from around the world, is now at the Gallery until September 16 and is a definite must-see if you are in Ottawa this summer.
Said to be a witty conversationalist while her clients sat for hours for their portraits, she showed her great talent as an artist from a young age. She carefully composed her paintings with great patience and skill. Her portraits show great sensitivity toward her subjects and all have a soulful gaze in a gentle and soft light. Her portraits capture people in a very calm mood, almost as if in mid-sentence, as if her subjects are about to disclose something wonderful. She liked to place roses in her portraits and never veered away from displaying great detail in the sumptuous costumes and powdered hairstyles of the day.
It's a rare thing to have this eye for beauty and mood as a painter, but she also had to survive in the political upheavals in France too. She was a great favourite of Marie Antoinette and two of her very paintings, Marie Antoinette and Her Children and Marie Antoinette with a Rose are in the exhibit. It is the first time that Marie Antoinette and Her Children have ever left France and the logistics of moving such a national treasure were so daunting that the frame of this particular portrait is still in France, considered much too risky to move such a heavy ornate gilt frame. Of course this particular work of art is still stunning in its temporary frame. Vigee le Brun cleverly composed the family in a triangular formation, like the Holy Family, and even had the son point toward the empty bassinet to remind viewers that the queen's fourth child had died. In a time long before cameras and YouTube, her portraits humanized a very unpopular aristocrat with unforgettable images.
If you had hired Vigee Le Brun as a painter, you would likely have found yourself set in a exquisite scene, with every small detail of your toilette noted and probably minus the wrinkles and any facial flaws. She made people look even more good-looking than they really were, she saw beauty that others didn't and people enjoyed the tedious hours of sittings because she relaxed them and appreciated them for who they were, she brought out a softer side. Her paintings are brilliant, her eye for beauty unmatched, her reputation as a artist is absolutely deserved.
This exhibit opened with the definition of a reptile: animals possessing an outer covering of dry horny scales, including turtles, snakes, lizards, crocodilians and surprise surprise birds. Focussing on the cold-blooded reptiles, there were all sorts of turtles to view and therefore this was a winner of an exhibit already. Really, who doesn't love a turtle? In particular the enormous snapping turtle seemed very lively and curious and thrilled many as its gaze followed the curious passersby through the glass.
I lost a staring contest with the rattlesnake, searched for geckos, watched a milk snake crawl steadily up a wall, hoped the green tree python cluster would unravel itself (they didn't) and shivered at the sight of the king cobra and gaboon viper. Really this was a fascinating exhibit and well-organized with plenty of factoids along the way, such as the difference between pythons and boas, and do boa constrictors have vertebrae - yes.
This remarkable Reptile exhibit is recommended!
This exhibit at the Canadian Museum of History is worth the rush and your hard-earned dinars...An eye-opening exhibit here till January covers the history of element 79, used in jewelry and coinage in ancient times to high-tech and medical advances of present day. With lodes(!) of artifacts from antiquity to the gold rushes of California and British Columbia, the museum unflinchingly relays both the allure of gold plus the seamy underbelly of greed.
A few artifacts were particularly memorable: a 400oz gold bar at the entrance, delicate and detailed gold jewelry, various gold coins throughout the ages, a stagecoach carefully restored, gold medals from the 2010 Vancouver Olympic games and large gold nuggets discovered along British Columbia's waterways.
There were also grim and somber artifacts in the exhibit such as revolvers and articles describing tragic clashes between prospectors and native peoples.
There were some fun activities for duffers: a Snakes 'n' Ladders game of gold rush adventures, using a rocker box to sift and separate out gold beads, guess which is gold and to top off an exhibit, a scale to check one's weight in gold. Too precious!
One big omission for the History Museum: what about the origins of element Au itself? I think the scientific background of theories of its origin should not have been missed. A rare misstep for the Museum.
Still, gold and time are both precious. This exhibit is worth the trip.
Let's not forget those mysterious runes found all over Scandinavia...
Ultimate Dinosaurs at the Nature Museum. This exhibit era ended September 5, 2016.
BODY WORLDS ANIMAL INSIDE OUT AT THE NATURE MUSEUM
ARCHIVES
Welcome aboard to one heck of an exhibit and this was absolutely worth the wait! We're still smiling reviewing all our pictures and this exhibit certainly is a terrific snapshot of life zipping about 400km above the Earth.
Crawl through the portal and enter a world full of ways to combat microgravity aboard the International Space Station. (Space)age-old questions such as What's for dinner? Do I need to bring toilet paper? and Just how cozy are the sleeping accommodations? are all answered here. Displayed are some cool ideas for downtime, such as taking some amazing Earth photos, playing the custom-made guitar and floating some wild bubbles.
Once fed and rested, there are loads of scientific experiments going on all the time aboard the ISS and some sample research kits are displayed, for growth of trees in space and neutron radiation levels in the ISS. Plus astronauts have to be ready for any repairs to the Station. Try on a pair of EMU astronaut gloves to hook and unhook a clip in changing pressures. Very low gravity is tough on a body so workout with a resistance exercise like they do in space. Combat any homesickness with a visit to the ISS's cupola as it travels above earth at 8km/s...Beautiful!
This was a really fun visit and concluded with a clown nose display...even in space, everyone needs a laugh.
Highly recommended!
Actually, I really didn't much enjoy the Photography in Canada 1960-2000. It seemed to be mostly a mishmash of photos but there was a beautiful photo taken by Jin-me Yoon entitled Souvenirs of the Self (Lake Louise), 1991.
Yes, the Viking/Norse peoples did have axes and spears. And yes, while some Vikings did encroach upon other lands, raiding and pillaging, most Norseman mostly used these tools for farming. Blacksmithing required tedious days to forge swords and anvils. There is a wonderful Viking sword replica which you can hold and experience the weight, balance and artistry for yourself. Bone flutes have been found in excavations, along with horns for drinking. And yes, the Viking peoples were masters at ship-building. Felling massive trees and shaping great vessels to face the ocean, mostly only stories, images and metal rivets remain. But mere decades ago, a Viking boat was found preserved almost intact under obvious ideal circumstances.
The stories of Thor and Odin have been carefully preserved by the Nordic peoples. Upon the introduction of Christianity, the cross was placed upon jewelry and household items.
CHRISTMAS VISITS 2016
Okay, Christmas at the museums are such a fun time! The museums are beautifully decorated and everything just seems merry and bright!
We went to the National Gallery of Canada for the lighting of the gorgeous fir tree in the Great Hall. This event is always well attended and it is one we look forward to year after year. A special thank you to Daddy for many of these photos! We just had to drop by after Christmas for one more stroll through the excellent Janvier exhibit.
Minimalist Masterpiece in Focus ended as of April 24, 2016.
REPTILES at the Canadian Museum of Nature slithered away April 8, 2017
What a fun time at the official opening of the Chris Cran, Sincerely Yours exhibit at the Gallery! There were crowds of people chatting and discussing the new exhibit as the artist mingled, signed copies of the Gallery's book of his works and cheerfully mugged for the cameras.
I did get to chat with him briefly and then took time to really study the many pieces of his art over the course of his four decades as an artist. And to me, he is like the Canadian version of Andy Warhol, with his pop art and witty portraits of famous people with surprising titles.
And has anyone had more fun naming their paintings as Chris Cran? Some examples: Self-Portrait with the Combat Nymphos of Saigon, Self-Portrait Accepting a Cheque for the Commission of This Painting, Boat Face and Self-Portrait Just Two Maos Down from Some Guy with a Goddamned Tea Cozy on His Head. Offbeat, clever, playful, irreverent.
It was an enjoyable visit which led to a serious chat afterwards between hubby and me. After years of visiting the Gallery and seeing some very famous paintings, why did Chris Cran's pop art strike such a chord? We were thrown off-balance and found ourselves laughing and eagerly moving to the next painting to study it and then read the title. It was almost like reading the caption of a one-panel cartoon and seeing the joke come out of nowhere. That doesn't belittle the talent and effort. It's just that this is an artist having a great time jolting people into smiling. If art doesn't make you laugh, reflect and be inspired then what's the point anyway? For us, this exhibit was an unexpected gem and we walked out of the Gallery feeling refreshed. This is a fun exhibit. Recommended. As for getting to meet the man himself, pure bonus.
ALEX JANVIER's paintings made a swirly exit April 17, 2017
After many museum visits, serious computations and compelling discussions, here are our favourites for the Ottawa museums' big summer 2015 draws...in order....
Winner winner....Gladiators at the War Museum because all the information is creatively concluded by bringing the visitor into the virtual underbelly of the Colosseum, followed by Life in Orbit at the Aviation Museum for detailing the awesome life of an astronaut aboard the ISS, and very close behind is Colville at the Gallery for brilliant curatorial effort, next up is Greeks at the History Museum for a very ambitious exhibit with exquisite artifacts and stories...and a distant last place to Body Worlds at the Nature Museum because it felt like a visit to a morgue or a creepy Ripley's Believe or Not. We love the Nature Museum but this particular exhibit was no favourite of ours.
This ambitious exhibit spans a huge period of time, from about 6000BC to about 300BC, and presents hundreds of artifacts from Neolithic times to Alexander the Great. There's just so many priceless artifacts, loads of pottery and coins and marble portraits along with stories of Greek heroes and kings.
The exhibit opens with fertility goddess figurines from the hunter-gatherer to agricultural era. When Aegean maritime trading began around 3200BC, the artifacts presented included marble bowls and bronze spears and even an elaborate clay frying pan/tray/intriguing mystery artifact(!) was shown. There were pieces of coloured pottery with bull motifs from the Minoan civilization and an unusual clay tablet with Minoan script.
Many elegant artifacts were unearthed from the Royal Tombs of Mycenae, such as gold cups and goblets, large clay figurines and even a helmet made of wild boar tusks. The gold ornamentation was elaborate and beautiful and tools of the goldsmith were even included in the exhibit.
Fast forward to 800BC and the writings of Homer and the Greek legends on earthenwares. There were stunning marble statues, along with sample carving tools and decorating pigments of that era.
Classical Greece birthed the Olympics, democracy, philosophy and theatre. Some highlights here were a marble statue of "Leonidas" the Spartan king, a kleroterion for random selection of jurors, a bronze discus, Philip II's silver and gold diadem and his sixth wife's gold myrtle crown. The famous marble portrait of Alexander the Great is right at the end.
This exhibit is extensive and worth seeing and is in town till October 12, 2015.
Above, L to R: To Prince Edward Island, Horse and Train, Moon and Cow
COLVILLE AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF CANADA
The new exhibit Gladiators & the Colosseum: Death & Glory is a direct hit. They crushed it. A decisive win. Thumb up!
A giant map details the astounding extent of the Roman empire over the centuries and then you've stepped back in time. Welcome to gladiator school, get used to the food, training and medical care, dream of the cash reward and then march proudly into the Colosseum under the weight of the helmut, shield, greaves, shoulder guards and sword. The architecture of the Colosseum is also reviewed with actual marble and limestone fragments and architectural sketches and videos. A marvel of engineering and artistry, it was constructed in about ten years and no expense was spared. Once opened, gladiator slaves, soldiers and exotic animals were marched to centre stage to the roars of the public. Even the mosaics detailing battles of the Colosseum were shockingly detailed. To recover, you can always sketch some graffiti in the kids' section. It's an intense visit.
The exhibit is here till September 7 and it is definitely worth going. War museum curators, we salute you for this eye-opening exhibit.
Bad to the bone....Ba-ba-ba-BAD!
A great big welcome to the giants of Gondwana now at the Nature Museum from June 11 to September 5, 2016. These dinos from the Southern Hemisphere were the biggest to roam the earth and some humungous dinosaurs casts are on display, showcasing their evolutionary journey through the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods. Some background here: Gondwana is the name of the ancient supercontinent containing much of the present South America, Africa, Madagascar, Australia and Antarctica, along with parts of India and the Arabian peninsula. When Pangea broke up, the southern cousins of dinosaurs developed some very unique features, such as sails, front-facing teeth and even teeth set straight across the jawbone like wide teeth on a comb. And yeah, these dinos are big, really massive.
The exhibit is set up in a sneakily effective way. It all begins with innoculous maps of Pangea breaking up and drifting apart, small examples of dinosaur bones and teeth and how to make replicas of them, smallish skeletons as examples of adaption and diversity, an imaginative video of a Rahonavis soaring over dinosaurs on the move and then BAM!, you're in the next rooming cowering below massive skeletons of ancient creatures, peering at their freakish teeth and standing small beside a dino leg bone. Visitors are surrounded by murals of dinosaur environs and sounds of dinosaurs roaring are piped in.
There are some really nice activities for youngsters such as small dioramas with moveable toy dinos and vegetation against colourful backdrops. There is a Dino Challenge where imprints of dinosaurs are collected at six different stations with interesting factoids about each subject. It's a nice keepsake and kids were enthusiastically collecting their souvenir stamps.
Yes, admission to the Ultimate Dinosaur exhibit is extra on top of museum admittance but we were glad we saw it. Stepping back in time lends perspective!
DEADLY SKIES - AIR WAR, 1914-1918
a scheduled departure from the Canadian War Museum January 29, 2017
Score! The Hockey exhibit at the History Museum is a big win. From the infancy of informal hockey to its ubiquitous success present-day, this exhibit is a big hit. And this just isn't an exhibit, it is a wonderfully nostalgic glimpse of the sport and its permeation into the Canadian psyche. Because it really is Canada's game and the development of this sport is tied to Canada, coast to coast to coast. Yes, deferential and polite Canadians are absolutely passionate about hockey! I admit, I was skeptical when I learned that this was the major blockbuster for the History Museum to celebrate Canada's 1-5-0...but hockey and Canada are tied together and this exhibit is a tribute to both.
The exhibit covers the evolution of hockey sticks, helmets, padding and skates and the sheer rigours and physicality of the game. Canada's oldest known hockey stick is proudly on display, hand-made and from Cape Breton, circa 1835-1838. Acme Club skates are displayed, from Halifax, circa 1865. There is even a mini "hockey rink" and a mini jumbo-tron suspended about the centre line. Hockey jerseys are proudly displayed, the highlight being the one that Paul Henderson wore during the 1972 Summit Series when he scored the winning goal. The piped-in music and commentary only adds to experience. Even the earliest coverage of the game are mentioned, along with a mock-up of a commentator's section. The camouflage jacket Don Cherry wore to Kandahar in 2010 to support the troops is also proudly on display.
The commercialism of the game is also explored, from early trading cards to lunch boxes to cereal boxes and team merchandise. Hockey is everywhere in Canada, from countless breakfast tables to key rings. The fun Super Chexx hockey table at the end of the exhibit was a great way to end this excellent exhibit.
Insert qualifier here: I love the Nature Museum BUT(T!) for a moment please lend me your ear....
The Body Worlds Animal Inside Out exhibit uses a process of plastination to highlight creatures in excruciating detail from circulatory and skeletal systems to digestion, but I just wish it had been an auxillary exhibit to a bigger summer blockbuster. Let's face (!) it, not everyone wants to see camel gut and giraffe stacked cross-sections. Not to belittle the technical expertise but(t) it would have been an amazing sideliner. There are lots of specimens like squid, a mako shark, a bull, some ostrich, man's best friend and *gasp* man.
The exhibit reminded me at times of visiting a veterinary college, then a butchery and then a morgue. While it did lead me to appreciate the incredible complexity of creatures, it just would have been better as a side note for me. Hey, this was a valuable learning experience but I found that by the time I got to circulation, younger children became whiny and I don't normally notice background noise like that. For family feedback on the exhibit, there were long pauses and things like, The brain was okay, I suppose; I didn't know how many veins were in a horse's head; If I had come in with food, I would have lost my appetite; It was interesting to see how thick a human skull was.
This was a very gutsy (!) exhibit for the big summer draw. While I applaud risk at times...dang!...Animal Inside Out was no favourite of this family for sure. Next visit we'll stick to our perennial favs, like the dinosaur section and hairy tarantulas in the Animalium. Visit the Nature Museum...but(t)...and this is a big but(t!)....don't pony (!) up extra cash for this exhibit....
Above L to R: Mako shark, bull, octopus
THE GREEKS AT THE HISTORY MUSEUM
ottawa museum reviews.com
HOCKEY at the History Museum iced as of October 9, 2017
While Monet is deservedly famous for his portrayals of wonderfully mysterious water lilies floating gently upon other-worldly ponds, he also painted bridges, a very different and more restrictive subject. Engineering marvels, yes, I thought, but bridges can hardly be in the same class as a mist-enshrouded lake!
This exhibit of twelve of his paintings is an eye-opening one. His compositions of bridges are carefully set into the natural world and at times in the busyness of the work day. And while he embraces the challenges of accurately painting the spans and arches, he still manages to create the serene water images, along with brilliantly painted skies. Deftly and confidently, his brushstrokes create a world in which bridges serve an important function of everyday life while the reflections of the bridges upon the water are gently composed.
If any painting of a bridge can appear both romantic and magical, it has to be Monet's Waterloo Bridge: the Sun in a Fog, belonging to the Gallery. This incredible composition portrays his mastery of light and reverence for nature with shimmering brushstrokes. And, in my opinion, just to study this one painting is worth the entire exhibit. Because while Monet could paint two very different and challenging studies, the natural world vs the man-made one, this one painting seems to bring it all together to me and elevates both themes into one. He successfully incorporated the rigid and architectural bridge into a surreal and gentle portal, from the manufactured world to a mystical realm.
I went to see how a painter, famous for peaceful misty water scenes, could portray something as exacting and uncompromising as a bridge, and this exhibit delivered it with water and sky, mood and setting as the ties that bind.
The exhibit is at the Gallery from October 29, 2015 to February 15, 2016. Don't just save this exhibit for a last-minute Valentine's Day date....So glad to see these wonderful perspectives!
At the History Museum, the exhibit Napoleon and Paris reigns until January 8, 2017. We were wowed. It is THE exhibit to see, don't miss it! It is an unforgettable plunge into history. As an added bonus: nearby is Gold Rush! - El Dorado in British Columbia, until January 15, 2017. Discover your weight in gold.
Star Trek: The Starfleet Academy Experience is at the Aviation Museum and is an engaging Enterprise for all of USS. Live long and visit! It's so much fun but pricey. Where else in this town are you going to diagnose an ill Klingon?! Here till Stardate September 5.
A great big welcome to Ultimate Dinosaurs at the Nature Museum, in town until September 5. It was a super exhibit with a really fun Dino Challenge activity for the kids. Of particular interest is the fascinating comb-like teeth of the Nigersaurus. Of course the Giganotosaurus skeleton was memorable too...Yikes!
At the Gallery, Elisabeth Louise Vigee Le Brun's wonderful portraits are proudly displayed until September 11. Don't brush off this fantastic opportunity, head on over! Plus a terrific bonus: the fun exhibit Chris Cran, Sincerely Yours is at also at the Gallery until September 5, featuring one of Canada's most foremost pop artists. It was light-hearted and enjoyable, like reading the Sunday comics! Also Rufino Tamayo's modernist art is on display.
At the War Museum until January 29, 2017, the exhibit Deadly Skies - Air War focuses on the emergence of military aerial strategy during World War I. Buckle up! We liked this exhibit but ranked it lowest because the artifacts were fine but few. Save this one for a free Thursday evening excursion.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy Experience at the Aviation Museum:
from Stardate May 13, 2016 to Stardate September 5, 2016.
The logbook for this particular mission is now complete.
Okay, this is the must-see exhibit of the summer in the National Capital Region. Merveilleux! Inspirant! Incroyable!
This exhibit immediately cleared up a common myth about Napoleon: Was he short? 5'5".
But was he a tyrant? Well, that one is complicated. He did introduce high school to France while also approving hard surveillance on the vast public spaces to stamp out any whiff of sedition, his exceptional beaucracy introduced street numbers to France while also repurposing monasteries and churches, he founded the Bank of France while embracing a life of court luxury after the ordeals of military campaigns. Although he did not reside in Paris for many years, he recognized the strategic importance of an impressive capital city on the world's stage. His vision for Paris is still stamped on the city to this day in some of its most famous monuments, buildings and bridges.
Revealing clues to this complex man's persona, Napoleon was eminently quotable. Here are my favourite quotes from the exhibit:
"The word 'impossible' does not exist in the French language."
"A great capital is the homeland of a nation's elite...it is the centre of opinion, the repository of everything."
"Power and pageantry go hand in hand. I had to project an image, to appear grave, to establish rules of etiquette. Otherwise, people would have slapped me on the shoulder daily."
This exhibit is packed with fascinating objects from two centuries ago. There are keys from the Bastille, Napoleon's own collar of a Grand master of the the Order of the Legion of Honour (an order which he established), his camp bed for his military campaigns, Napoleon's Great Coat of Arms with its stunning carvings of eagles and bees, a snare drum from the Battle of Waterloo, one of Napoleon's bicorne hats and Napoleon's throne. There is a really helpful film summarizing some of the most significant events in his life plus a fun and informative seek-and-find activity for the youngsters to solve. Wow, what an ambitious exhibit and it does to justice to a time encompassing both political upheavals and the grandeur of the French court. This is one of the most outstanding exhibits that this Museum has had in years. Bravo! Inoubliable! The exhibit is here until January 8, 2017.
I'll give the last words to the complicated man himself: "A leader is a dealer in hope."
Bugs galore at the Nature Museum and it is absolutely worth the trip!
Lorenzo Possenti's true-to-scale models of insects are marvellous. Greeted by a gigantic but beautiful broad-tailed butterfly at the exhibit entrance, step into their world. There are large-size models of beetles, grasshoppers, butterflies and dragonflies accompanied by a myriad of facts and lots of mounted specimens to study. The Museum has really went all out to present loads of fascinating details and stories about these creatures and large screen photos are constantly being shown of all sorts of bugs, bugs, bugs. Insect sounds are even piped in as you walk about to further immerse you into the world of six-legged creatures. There's an excellent kid zone where kids can try to match the proportional long jump of a grasshopper, look through lenses to experience compound eyes, lift "weights" and roll a dung ball/bean bag. Check out the elephant beetle and the giraffe beetle as they search their terrariums and gaze upon the monarch environment as they feed upon oranges and fly amongst the flowers. Gently hold the walking stick--eek!--as it cautiously explores your palm.
It's a marvellous exhibit and there's just so much to experience and take in! Get antsy and check out some of the wonderful sights, sounds, colours and stories of the insect world.
One sour note at the Gallery: To be really honest, this newest Masterpiece in Focus featuring sculptures by Tony Smith and Kiki Smith was beyond disappointing. I noticed that people didn't linger and study like I had witnessed with previous MiF exhibits. Visitors just seemed to look and walk away, so that the whole space simply became a shortcut through the Gallery.
The minimalist sculptures could have been so much more. (!) Minimalism has its place but in my experience with this particular exhibit, what was minimal was the time spent in the room. And the Kiki Smith sculpture was bizarre. Yeah, it was like that. Argh. Insert eye-rolling here.
The exhibit Vimy: Beyond the Battle honours the brave dead of Canada who fought a brutal battle to overtake a large escarpment in France Easter Monday April 9 to April 12, 1917. The battle was spearheaded by brilliant strategists and deployed all four Canadian divisions for the first time in unified formation, plus a British division. The mission was fraught with danger, and then faced with courage. Of the 170,000 soldiers fighting, 3598 Canadian soldiers never made it home. Those who survived came back home to a true country, no longer a colony. Without a doubt the battle at Vimy Ridge defined Canada as a nation. This exhibit commemorates the sacrifice of the soldiers on its 100th anniversary and it is also a fitting tribute to Canada in this its sesquicentennial year.
When you first walk into the exhibit, one of the first things you will see is a plaster cast of The Spirit of Sacrifice (The Torch Bearer) by Walter Seymour Allward. The sculpture is part of Canada's National Vimy Ridge Memorial. The allegorical figure itself is inspired by the poem In Flanders Fields by Lt-Col John McCrae, a reminder that the heroic dead pass the torch of fighting for freedom to those left behind. This powerful image was also used in recruitment posters during the Second World War.
The exhibit features many ways that both the soldiers and the public have commemorated the Battle at Vimy Ridge, from deer hide art, to quilts, to paintings and poems.
A highlight of the exhibit is a scaled-down replica of the Canadian National Vimy Ridge Memorial. How do you even attempt to sculpt a moment to honour the great sacrifice and bravery of such a battle and throughout the Great War? The competition was won by Toronto architect Walter Seymour Allward whose designs now stand at that Vimy Ridge site of the northern corner of France, and unveiled with great pomp by King Edward VIII on July 26, 1936. Using metaphorical figures such as Mother Canada, Justice and Peace, the construction took eleven years to complete.
In addition to the replica of the Vimy Ridge Monument, there is a wall of lights, each light representing each soldier who died in the battle.
There are activities in the exhibit where the public is asked to participate in the commemoration of the soldiers and commitment to peace, such as writing names of those committed to peace on a ribbon and tying it to a grid and also writing thoughts on paper containing poppy seeds which will be planted on the roof of the museum.
This was one of the best exhibits that the War Museum has presented. Very highly recommended.
If you've got a mere few spare hours of free time, drop by the History Museum and see the Vikings exhibit. I confess I had these preconceptions in my head, believing that Vikings were barbaric and terrifying men of war with their horned helmets, yelling and brandishing swords. I thought they were scary gigantic seafarers crossing cold waters with sketchy maps to steal and pillage and set fires. But that's just not the whole story...
Hundreds of artifacts from the Swedish History Museum were carefully assembled to describe the Viking Age, from about 750 to 1100 AD. Grouped into the themes of community, family life, religion and mythology, burial customs, craftsmanship, trade and ships the exhibit was eye-opening and thorough. First off, the word "Viking" can describe a situation or an activity so that anyone could "go on a viking" like a commercial trip or raid. Most of the people in Scandinavia at that time were living off the land, farming, raising animals, hunting, fishing and just trying to survive. Few adults lived past the age of forty and many children did not even make it past ten. Yikes.
Many lived in family communities and in those famed Nordic longhouses. The Norse men seemed to be quite vain about their long beards. Bone combs were a treasured possession and some combs even had a comb case! Both men and women loved to wear brooches and the metalwork was very fine and detailed. There are some wonderful examples of silver and gold brooches, and necklaces of shells, glass beads and semi-precious stones too.
Finally, the Canadian and Indigenous Art 1968 - present was fascinating and varied. The modernistic flair was there and there was some especially memorable pieces indeed.
Below are some highlights from my visit!
A round of applause for a terrific exhibit!
NAPOLEON AND PARIS AT THE HISTORY MUSEUM
As of January 8, 2017, this exhibit met its Waterloo.
A brief mention of Masterpiece in Focus also. This exhibit featured works by Ron and Damian Moppett. The artwork is so colourful and unexpected that it was actually quite a pleasant stop!
Vimy - Beyond the Battle sombrely left the War Museum November 12, 2017
Bugs Outside the Box at the Nature Museum, packed up as of March 27, 2016
I leave you with this quote from Alfred Laliberte, a French-Canadian sculptor: "Beauty is indispensable to all human life. That's why we must sow it all along our path."
Museum exhibits for summer 2016
**Drum roll please!** After lots of hard thought, here are our favourite exhibits at Ottawa's major museums and galleries this summer, from the must-see blockbuster to the visit-on-a-free-Thursday-evening exhibit.
It was during World War I that battles took to the sky, revolutionizing military strategy and combat.
This exhibit describes how the use of aviation unlocked the stalemate of trench warfare of the First World War, through aerial observation/reconnaissance, dog fights, arial bombing raids and joint attack with ground forces. Comic strips of real people are displayed to describe the emergent aerial techniques used during the war, using stories based on the Red Baron Manfred von Richthofen, Canadian fighter pilot Eric Ohman, American flying instructor Marjorie Stinson, balloonist Maurice Arundel and Zeppelin commander Heinrich Mathy and others. Aviation buffs will enjoy seeing a Sopwith Pup and artifacts from WWI such as trench maps, pilot's log, aerial camera and even the Red Baron's silver cup. There are some activities for children, such as dressing up as a fighter pilot, an aerial battle video simulation and a hot air balloon observation challenge. This exhibit is still informative about the formidable challenges that had to be overcome and the bravery involved but this was not one of the museum's best efforts, mostly due to a lack of artifacts to really emphasize the stories portrayed.
These photos and examples are just a fraction of what this exhibit has to offer. I recommend it but don't rush through this exhibit....It's like a gourmet coffee...sip and enjoy. =) It's here just till April 17.
Elisabeth Louise Vigee Le Brun at the Gallery...As of September 11, 2016, this exhibit signed off with an elegant flourish.
TAMAYO: A Solitary Mexican Modernist
As of October 10, 2016, this colourful but solitary modernist has left the Gallery....
As of October 10, 2016, this colourful but solitary exhibit has left the Gallery...
This small but impressive exhibit features works by the famous Mexican artist Rufino Tamayo and his exploration of strong colours in a modernist styles. The paintings vary from whimsical and lovely such as Watermelons and The Great Galaxy to more sinister themes leaving one burdened, such as The Leader and Man Glowing with Happiness. Capably blending imagination, emotion and composition, this exhibit is a little gem and is only here in Ottawa from June 25 to October 10, 2016.
VIKINGS at the History Museum. This longboat left the shore as of April 17, 2016.
Chris Cran, Sincerely Yours at the Gallery
May 20 to September 5, 2016. The sassiness has now left the building!
The National Gallery of Canada went all out to celebrate Canada's 1-5-0 and ART 2017 has three major components: Canadian Indigenous Art from Time Immemorial to 1967, Photography in Canada 1960-2000 and Canadian and Indigenous Art 1968 to present.
Let's start with Canadian Indigenous Art from Time Immemorial to 1967. This was my very favourite exhibit and the goosebumps are only now starting to go down!
Factoid picked up while gazing through the gallery: there is no word for "art" in Canada's many indigenous languages. The indigenous peoples of Canada have always been very connected to the land and their culture is tied closely to the physical and spiritual world. Therefore, to extrapolate now, "art" was not something separate that some do, but it was a part of them collectively, from the clothes worn, to the tools used with the designs, to the paintings, the sculptures and music. So much can be learned from studying the objects passed down through the ages, not just from the objects but the world-view they presented and lived in! And Canada's first nation people have a lot to share and the items on exhibit display a reverence for both nature and the spiritual world.
Some highlights of the ART 150 are below and it was difficult to even pick and choose what to share. **goosebumps again**
Gold Rush! at the History Museum, panned out on January 15, 2017
Wow, wow, what can I say but this: Get thee to the Gallery!
Oh yes, indeedy, gazillions, the Gallery scored a blockbuster with the Colville exhibit! It was so busy on a glorious May weekend here in Ottawa, what with the tulip festival and Mother's Day but they came in droves to see some of Alex Colville's very best paintings...and left smiling.
The preparation for this exhibit was outstanding and the descriptions and anecdotes accompanying the paintings made the visit even more memorable. There were so many of his fabulous works and the hungry public ate it up. Like the stories of Alex Colville and his wife and their marriage, his love of animals and his grief at the horrors of war, his unflinching honesty facing old age and his love of geometric detail juxtaposed with harsh profound symbolism.
Some of the paintings in this collection were obviously two of his very famous works: To Prince Edward Island (1964) and Horse and Train (1954). The public was also wowed by Moon and Cow (1963), Church and Horse (1964), Seven Crows (1960), Couple on Beach (1957), Pacific (1967) and Ocean Limited (1962).
Not only were his paintings stark and shocking at times, sometimes it was the quotes, just in case the imagery didn't hammer his views home:
"This being in Bergen-Belsen was strange. As I've said to a number of people, the thing one felt was one felt badly that one didn't feel worse. That is to say, you see one dead person and it is too bad, but seeing 500 is not 500 times worse. There is a certain point at which you begin to feel nothing...It was a profoundly affecting experience."
"I don't think there's such a thing as an evil animal."
"My painting occurs when I think of two disparate elements."
I admire the courage and honesty of his works, he was brilliant at positioning two images together and creating an unsettling mood over it, leaving one to marvel and brood. This exhibit highlights Colville's mastery, not only painting detailed composition but deftly weaving emotions and ideas.
See this exhibit in Ottawa this summer, a win for the Gallery and a win for the public.