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First exhibition to comprehensively explore the world
of the Maharajas
This fall the Art Gallery of Ontario opens its doors to the
magnificent world of India’s great kings. Maharaja:
The Splendour of India’s Royal Courts,
organized in collaboration with the Victoria & Albert Museum,
London, will make its sole Canadian stop at the AGO, with a
members-only preview starting November 17 and public viewing
from November 20, 2010 to February 27, 2011. The
exhibition features over 200 opulent objects, including
paintings, tapestry, thrones, weapons, and jewels, most on view
in North America for the first time.
Spanning the last 300 years of India’s culture - from the
beginning of the 18th century, to the end of British
rule in 1947, and concluding with a look at the legacy of the
Maharajas today - the exhibition examines the social and
historical role of these kings and their courts, bringing to
light the ancient royal traditions that have permeated the lives
of descendants worldwide.
The four galleries of the AGO’s Sam and Ayala Zacks Pavilion
will be devoted to the exhibition, with works on loan from the
Victoria & Albert Museum, Qatar Museums Authority, British
Museum, National Gallery of Canada, Virginia Museum of Fine
Arts, Asian Art Museum, Cartier, the National Portrait
Gallery, and various private lenders.
Among the 200 objects on view are some of India’s greatest
treasures, including the magnificent Patiala Necklace, part of
the largest single commission that the French house of Cartier
has ever executed. Completed in 1928 and restored in 2002,
this piece of ceremonial jewellery contains 2,930 diamonds and
weighs almost one thousand carats.
Other key works in the show include the famed throne once
belonging to Maharaja Ranjit Singh, a life-sized model elephant
adorned with textiles and trappings and accompanied by a silver
howdah from the early 19th century, a carriage
entirely made of silver commissioned by the Maharaja of
Bhavnagar, paintings of spectacular royal processions, royal
costumes and traditional dress worn by great kings and queens,
ceremonial weapons including daggers, swords and matchlock guns,
and prized photographs by artists including Man Ray and Cecil
Beaton.
“Many of the arts of India exist today as a result of the
patronage of the Maharajas,” says Dr. Stephen Inglis, adjunct
curator of the exhibition and curator emeritus from the Canadian
Museum of Civilization. “Their support of artists resulted
in splendid and beautiful objects symbolic of royal status,
power and identity, as well as the survival of many forms of
dance and music. Because of their support, these traditions
lived on, and now allow us the opportunity to stage such an
amazing display of art and artifacts.”
“Continuing to broaden the definition of art, the AGO is
thrilled to provide the opportunity for people in Toronto and
the GTA to experience this unforgettable history, and the social
and political happenings of that time,” says Matthew Teitelbaum,
AGO Director and CEO. “This is an exhibition of exploration and
education. We look forward to sharing with the communities
that are so directly in touch with this extraordinary culture.”
The AGO Community Ambassador Team, a group of volunteers who hit
the streets to spread the word about what’s going on at the
Gallery, will be celebrating the coming of this exciting
exhibition at numerous festivals around the city. Visit
the team at the Mosaic Festival, July 9 to 11;
the South Asian Festival on Gerrard, July 17; Masala
Mehndi Masti, July 24 & 25; Panorama India
Independence Day Festival, August 14; the CNE, August
19 to September 6; and Manifesto,
September 25.
Tickets to the exhibition will range from $15 for youth to
$26.50 for adult general admission. Access to the
Gallery's permanent collection included with admission.
For more information and exhibition details including tickets,
programs and community thoughts and feedback, visit
http://www.ago.net/maharaja-exhibition.
AGO members receive free admission to the exhibition.
Member’s previews are scheduled to take place on November 17
and 18. For more information on membership benefits,
please visit
www.ago.net/membership.
As preparations continue for the opening of this major fall
show, the AGO is pleased to present a number of other exciting
exhibitions to kick off the fall season:
American art superstar Julian Schnabel has spent his life
pushing the limits of painting and crossing artistic boundaries
as an award-winning filmmaker. For the first time, a major
retrospective examines the connections between painting and film
in Schnabel’s work, tracing how his paintings exist in dialogue
with the cinema and revealing the rich interplay between the two
media. Julian Schnabel: Art and Film will occupy
the entire fifth floor of the Art Gallery of Ontario’s Vivian &
David Campbell Centre for Contemporary Art from September 1,
2010 through January 2, 2011.
At Work features three unique exhibitions linked by a
common exploration of process and labour, providing new insights
into the remarkable work of three major international artists
and their dedicated and focused work in the studio.
Simultaneously, the AGO presents Eva Hesse: Studioworks
organized by the Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh;
Betty Goodwin: Work Notes, with works from the AGO’s
permanent and archival collections; and Agnes Martin: Work
Ethic, with works on loan from the Whitney Museum of
American Art. The exhibition will occupy the entire fourth floor
of the Art Gallery of Ontario’s Vivian & David Campbell Centre
for Contemporary Art from September 22, 2010 to January 2, 2010.
Four leading-edge photographers — Josh Brand, Moyra Davey,
Leslie Hewitt, and Kristan Horton — have been recognized
for their excellence and chosen as finalists for the 2010
Grange Prize, a partnership between Aeroplan and the Art
Gallery of Ontario. Now in its third year, The Grange Prize is
Canada’s largest photography prize, awarding $50,000 to the
winner, and $5,000 to each of the runners-up – granting a total
of $65,000 to photographic artists each year. The winner will be
chosen by the public this fall, when exhibitions celebrating
this year’s finalists are mounted at the AGO from September 22
to November 2, 2010 and at the Museum of Contemporary
Photography (MoCP) at Columbia College Chicago, this year’s
partner institution. More information on the Grange Prize
can be found at
www.thegrangeprize.com.
From October 23, 2010 to February 6, 2011, the AGO will host an
exhibition that will rediscover the work of the world’s greatest
sculptor, Henry Moore. Organized by Tate Britain
in collaboration with the Art Gallery of Ontario, Henry
Moore will focus on the artist’s early works from the
1920s and 30s. It was during this time that Moore created
his most radical and experimental work, establishing his initial
brilliance which in turn led to future fame.
ABOUT THE AGO
With a permanent collection of more than 79,000 works of art,
the Art Gallery of Ontario is among the most distinguished art
museums in North America. In 2008, with a stunning new design by
world-renowned architect Frank Gehry, the AGO opened its doors
to the public amid international acclaim. Highlights include
Galleria Italia, a gleaming showcase made of wood and glass
running the length of an entire city block along the Gallery’s
façade; and the feature staircase, spiraling up through the roof
of Walker Court and into the new contemporary galleries above.
From the extensive Group of Seven collection to the dramatic new
African art gallery; from the cutting-edge works in the Vivian &
David Campbell Centre for Contemporary Art to Peter Paul Rubens’
masterpiece The Massacre of The Innocents, a highlight of
the celebrated Thomson Collection, there is truly something for
everyone at the AGO.
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