Like many of you, we have been closely following the developments of COVID-19. The Gardiner Museum is closed temporarily as of March 14, 2020. We will continue to take guidance from our public health officials regarding the duration of the closure and will post updates to our website and social media channels as they become available. We are grateful for your support and thank you for your patience and understanding as we work to navigate this challenging time. We look forward to welcoming you back to the Gardiner soon.
Our spring sessional classes and workshops scheduled for April and May have been cancelled. Refunds will be issued automatically.
The Gardiner Museum is among the few museums in the world focused on ceramics, and is one of the most important specialty museums internationally. It houses approximately 4,000 objects, including European porcelain, ceramics from the Ancient Americas, Chinese porcelain, Japanese porcelain, and contemporary ceramics. Search the collection online!
Support the Gardiner's mission to champion clay, build community, and promote arts education. All of our memberships include a full year of free admission to the Museum, as well as discounts at CLAY Restaurant and the Gardiner Shop, and start and at just $30!
Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival Featured Exhibition
ARTIFACT by Deborah Samuel explores the narrative of transformation. While the individual images remain static, when the viewer moves, the photographs evolve in an almost cinematic manner. Viewed collectively and at a distance, the twelve 20 x 24 inch carbon pigment prints produce a planetary effect evoking ancient human cultures and mysterious celestial constructions. As the viewer gets closer, the images resolve into their essential materials: earthy, mineral matter within stone forms, ashes, and water. Ambiguous in scale, and sensual in tonality and texture, the stillness of the compositions in black and white renders these abstractions serenely minimalist. Installed on the first floor of the Gardiner Museum, the works are presented as a typological series, a continuous wall.
About the artist
Born in Vancouver, Deborah Samuel studied photography at Sheridan College. Known for her fashion photography and portraits of celebrities including Leonard Cohen, Margaret Atwood, Rush, and Queen Noor, Samuel’s work has appeared in GQ, Rolling Stone, Esquire, Spin, and Entertainment Weekly. Her photographs are part of the collections of the Royal Ontario Museum, Winnipeg Art Museum, and Santa Barbara Art Museum, as well as numerous private and corporate collections. Samuel’s recent work captures the beauty and mysteries of the natural world. She has published three books, Dog and Pup, a collection of canine portraits, and The Extraordinary Beauty of Birds: Designs, Patterns and Details. She currently lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
About the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival
In recognition of the 150th anniversary of confederation, the Festival’s artistic vision focuses on Canada through a series of exhibitions, public installations and events. From documentary explorations of the nation’s shifting landscape and inhabitants, to projects that challenge perceptions of history and definitions of photography, CONTACT 2017 presents outstanding projects by established and emerging Canadian artists and curators.
CONTACT is the largest photography event in the world, and a premiere cultural experience in Canada, with over 1500 artists in 200 exhibitions and happenings throughout the month in the Greater Toronto Area. Founded in 1997, CONTACT is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to celebrating and fostering the art and profession of photography.
Image: Deborah Samuel, ARTIFACT.Matrix 126 (detail), 2016