The Art Gallery of Nova Scotia (AGNS) is a public provincial art museum based in Halifax,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

, Canada. The

art museum An art museum or art gallery is a building or space for the display of art, usually from the museum's own Collection (artwork), collection. It might be in public or private ownership and may be accessible to all or have restrictions in place. A ...

's primary building complex is located in

downtown Halifax Downtown Halifax is the primary central business district of the Halifax, Nova Scotia, Municipality of Halifax. Located on the central-eastern portion of the Halifax Peninsula, on Halifax Harbour. Along with Downtown Dartmouth, and other de facto ...

and takes up approximately of space. The museum complex comprises the former Dominion building and two floors of the adjacent Provincial building. The museum was established in 1908 as the Nova Scotia Museum of Fine Arts and was renamed the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia in 1975. The museum moved into the Dominion building in 1988 and expanded the museum complex in 1998. From 2006 to 2020, the museum operated a satellite branch in Yarmouth. The museum's permanent collection has over 18,000 works by Nova Scotian, Canadian, and international artists. Its collection is exhibited in its main location in Halifax as well as its satellite branch in Yarmouth. In addition to exhibiting works from its permanent collection, the museum has also organized and hosted a number of travelling arts exhibitions.

History

The art museum was founded as the Nova Scotia Museum of Fine Arts in 1908 in order to house the 200 works of the Crown of Nova Scotia. It was renamed the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia in 1975. During the museum's early history, the museum's collection and its exhibits moved between several locations, including at one point the

gunpowder magazine A gunpowder magazine is a magazine (building) designed to store the explosive gunpowder in wooden barrels for safety. Gunpowder, until superseded, was a universal explosive used in the military and for civil engineering: both applications requ ...

of Citadel Hill. Art Gallery of Nova Scotia (47633173451)

In 1988, the museum moved to the Dominion Building, opened in 1867 and designed by architects

David Stirling Sir Archibald David Stirling (15 November 1915 – 4 November 1990) was a Scottish officer in the British army, a mountaineer, and the founder and creator of the Special Air Service (SAS). He saw active service during the Second World War. ...

and William Hay. The museum expanded its space in 1998 to include two floors of the Provincial Building, located just to the south of Dominion Building. The two structures are separated by Ondaatje Court, a public space that, besides being used for temporary exhibitions, contains several large permanent

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

s. Underneath the courtyard is a large underground exhibition room which connects the two buildings. During the gallery's expansion, work was done to accommodate the home of

Maud Lewis Maud Kathleen Lewis (née Dowley; March 7, 1903 – July 30, 1970) was a Canadian folk artist from Nova Scotia. She lived most of her life in poverty in a small house in Marshalltown, Nova Scotia. She achieved national recognition in 1964 and 196 ...

into the museum building. Following that expansion, the museum complex covers of space, although only of it is used as exhibition space. In 1999, plans were announced by the

Government of Nova Scotia The Government of Nova Scotia (french: Gouvernement de la Nouvelle-Écosse, gd, Riaghaltas Alba Nuadh) refers to the provincial government of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Nova Scotia is one of Canada's ...

to built a satellite branch of the museum in southwestern Nova Scotia. On the 28 May 2006, the institution opened a satellite branch of the museum in Yarmouth, a municipality in southwest Nova Scotia. The satellite branch, branded as the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia Western Branch, provides additional exhibition space to exhibit works from the museum's permanent collection. The satellite branch building was housed in a former

Royal Bank of Canada Royal Bank of Canada (RBC; french: Banque royale du Canada) is a Canadian multinational financial services company and the largest bank in Canada by market capitalization. The bank serves over 17 million clients and has more than 89,000& ...

building built in 1913 and required renovations to expand its floor space by . The western branch operated until 2020, when smoke damage to the structure forced the museum to cease operations in the building. In 2008, the museum published a report that recommended the construction of a new museum building, citing its present downtown building as "seriously inadequate." The museum's administration also noted that the building's lack of climate control and the region's weather have made it difficult to preserve works at the location. In March 2018, a feasibility study was completed that recommended that the museum, along with the post-secondary art school

NSCAD University NSCAD University, also known as the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design or NSCAD, is a public art university in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The university is a co-educational institution that offers bachelor's and master's degrees. The univ ...

, move to a new "cultural hub." However, plans for these joint facilities with the art school were later scrapped. The proposed building was located at Bishop's Landing, bounded by Lower Water Street, Salter Street, and the Halifax Boardwalk. The estimated cost to construct the building is C$130 million to C$140 million. The provincial government committed C$80 million, while the

federal government A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...

committed C$30 million. The museum was tasked with raising C$30 million from public and private donors for the construction of the new building. Designs created by a

KPMB Architects KPMB is a Canadian architecture firm founded by Bruce Kuwabara, Thomas Payne, Marianne McKenna, and Shirley Blumberg, in 1987. It is headquartered in Toronto, where the majority of their work is found. Aside from designing buildings, the firm a ...

-led team were selected for the new building in November 2020.

Permanent collection

As of March 2019, the museum had over 18,000 works in its permanent collection. More than 2,000 Nova Scotian, Canadian, and non-Canadian artists are represented in the museum's permanent collection. Acquisitions for the museum's permanent collection are reviewed by the museum's Curatorial Committee, which includes curatorial and conservation staff, before being assessed by the museum's Director, Chief Curator, and the Curator of Collections. Further approval is then required from the museum's Acquisition Committee, made up of local artists, community members, and members of the museum's Board of Governors, before it is presented to the Board of Governors itself for final approval. Maud Lewis House (40666790093)

As of June 2017, the museum had 55 works by

, making the museum's collection the world's largest public collection of works by her. The works are displayed in the gallery's Maud Lewis exhibit, which is the most visited exhibition space in the museum according to the institution. In addition to works by Lewis, the museum's collection also includes her house. Lewis's house was purchased by the

after her death. In 1996, the museum took possession of the home, moving the small building into its Maud Lewis exhibit, along with some restoration work. In June 2013, the museum acquired a collection of 2,070 images by photographer

Annie Leibovitz Anna-Lou Leibovitz ( ; born October 2, 1949) is an American portrait photographer best known for her engaging portraits, particularly of celebrities, which often feature subjects in intimate settings and poses. Leibovitz's Polaroid photo of Jo ...

. The Leibovitz collection was donated to the museum by the Mintz family, after they acquired it for C$4.7 million. It includes 1,307 editioned prints and 763 vintage file prints, with the earliest image dating to 1983. However, while the museum maintains ownership of the collection, its copyright is still held by the artist, pending a payment dispute between the donors, certification board, and artist. The museum's collection also features works from a number of

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

artists, including

Kent Monkman Kent Monkman (born 13 November 1965) is a Canadian First Nations artist of Cree ancestry. He is a member of the Fisher River band situated in Manitoba's Interlake Region. He is both a visual as well as performance artist, working in a variety ...

. ''Miss Chief's Wet Dream'', a acrylic-on-canvas painting by Monkman, is among the largest works in the museum's permanent collection. It also includes a number of Nova Scotia artists such as

Nancy Edell Nancy Edell (November 12, 1942 – June 9, 2005) was an American-born Canadian artist, best known for her rug hooking practice that pushed the boundaries between art and craft. Her practice included animated film, woodcut, monotypes and drawi ...

Charlotte Lindgren Charlotte Lindgren (born 1931) is a Canadian sculptor-weaver, installation artist, photographer and curator. Lindgren gained worldwide fame for innovative weaving due to the response to her distinctive installation ''Aedicule'' in the 1967 ''Int ...

and

Carol Fraser Carol Hoorn Fraser (1930–1991) was an American-born figurative artist who worked for thirty years in Nova Scotia, Canada. Biography Carol Hoorn Fraser was born on September 5, 1930, in Depression-era Superior, Wisconsin. Her father, Arvid Ho ...

Selected works

File:2ndEarlofHalifaxByJoshuaReynoldsNSArtGallery.jpg,

Joshua Reynolds Sir Joshua Reynolds (16 July 1723 – 23 February 1792) was an English painter, specialising in portraits. John Russell said he was one of the major European painters of the 18th century. He promoted the "Grand Style" in painting which depend ...

, ''George Montagu-Dunk, 2nd Earl of Halifax'', unknown File:EdwardCornwallisArtGalleryofNovaScotia1756.jpg, Joshua Reynolds, ''Edward Cornwallis'', 1756 File:Andrew Belcher (1761-1841), 1808 by Robert Field.jpg, Robert Field, ''Andrew Belcher'', 1808 File:Edward Mortimer (c.1768-1819).jpg, Robert Field, ''Edward Mortimer'', 1815 File:John O'Brien - Flagship Wellesley and Squadron Leaving Halifax Harbour, 1850.jpg, John O'Brien, ''Flagship Wellesley and Squadron Leaving Halifax Harbour'', 1850 File:John O'Brien - The 'Arab', Brigantine, and the 'Milo', Brig, off Halifax Harbour, 1856.jpg, John O'Brien, ''The Arab'', 1856 File:Frederick B. Nichols - Excelsior (late Chicago) Mill, Goldenville, 1871.Art Gallery of Nova Scotia.jpg, Frederick B. Nichols, ''Excelsior (late Chicago) Mill, Goldenville'', 1871 File:John O'Brien - HMS Galatea, in a Heavy Sea, 1888.jpg, John O'Brien, '', in a Heavy Sea'', 1888

References

External links

* {{authority control Museums in Halifax, Nova Scotia Art museums and galleries in Nova Scotia Museums in Yarmouth County Yarmouth, Nova Scotia Crown corporations of Nova Scotia Art museums established in 1908 1908 establishments in Nova Scotia

History

Permanent collection

Selected works

See also

References

External links