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I’ve already registered and paid my conference fee, can I still register for a tour?
Absolutely! Just go back to the online registration and register “For Events Only”.
Can I register for a tour at the conference?
Registration for most tours will close before the start of the conference.
With the exception of the Buffalo Art and Architecture tour, all-day bus trips will have to meet minimum registration numbers by March 7th or risk cancellation. So if you are thinking about going on the Canadian Art, First Nations Art & Culture, or the
Fashion, Textile & Costume tours, please sign up by the end of early bird registration on March 7th.
Why are you making an exception for the Buffalo tour?
Because Torontonians love Buffalo! More importantly, a flight to Buffalo followed by ground travel to Toronto is less expensive than flying direct to Toronto's Pearson International Airport. And if you're going to be on an airport bus to Toronto anyway, why
not sign up for this all-day tour and enjoy the convivial company of ARLIS/NA friends all the way to the conference hotel.
How is a tour part of my professional development?
The tours offer many diverse opportunities to expand your knowledge in different subject areas. The Canadian Art tour is “Canadian Art 101” for anyone who wants a good overview.
Learn about Far Eastern art and culture on the tour, “East Asian Treasures of the ROM”. Discover the history of contemporary Aboriginal art in Canada during the “First Nations Art & Culture” tour. Every tour is a cultural learning experience! Also, the informal
settings of the tours with colleagues of similar interests, provide invaluable opportunities for networking outside the hectic, structured conference program.
Contemporary art is my thing; which of the tours would be most relevant?
We love contemporary art! The half-day Queen West art crawl will take you through the best of the alternative gallery scene, ending with a stop at the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art.
The full day Buffalo art and architecture tour will introduce you to the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, which has, in the words of Thomas Hoving, "one of the most thumping modern and contemporary collections
in the world." You will be up-close-and-personal with two of Canada’s most prominent contemporary artists of Native ancestry, Tom Hill and Shelley Niro, during the First Nations art & culture tour.
I’m an admitted conference shopaholic. Which tours will not disappoint?
Aficionados of
great museum shops absolutely must take at least one of the full day tours; all have been programmed to include tour-ending retail therapy: Canadian Art, Buffalo Art & Architecture or Fashion, Textile & Costume. If
books are your target, then check out these tours with specific subject areas: CLGA, Canadian Art, and Queen West Art Crawl., or First Nations Art & Culture. For fans of
chic coffee shops, exclusive hand-made goods or unique tchotchkes,
the Distillery District is an absolute must. Serious collectors of Native art
cannot miss the opportunity of the First Nations tour to visit Iroqrafts, widely known for traditional and ceremonial Iroquois arts and crafts.
I’m going to the Convocation reception at the Art Gallery of Ontario on Saturday night; will I see anything different on the Canadian Art tour on Friday?
Unlike the reception atmosphere, the tour will be a curator-guided, immersive experience for anyone new to Canadian art. Selected for the tour and not open for viewing during the
reception are the AGO’s “Thomson Collection of Canadian Paintings” and its Inuit art and First Nations objects galleries, plus an up close tour and discussion of the innovative Weston Family Learning Centre, led by its Executive Director.
Which tours highlight architecture?
Toronto’s diverse architecture will be showcased in the City Sightseeing Toronto bus tours, and the Distillery District tour. However, all tours will give you the opportunity to see Toronto’s
architectural landmarks. Examples of American architectural design are richly illustrated in the bus trip to Buffalo.
Which tours offer experiences that I will not be able to duplicate on my own initiative?
Two of the best speakers representing Aboriginal artists are Tom Hill and Shelley Niro. The First Nations Art & Culture tour brings them together for a special presentation for ARLIS/NA members. You will
have the opportunity to meet the artists and engage in discussion with them.
At the Royal Ontario Museum, the landmark exhibition,
Maya: Secrets of their Ancient World, is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and not to be missed. Most of the showcased objects are recently excavated and already being recognized as among the most
significant archaeological finds ever discovered in the region. This exhibition closes on April 9th, so time is running out to see these ancient wonders. Your ticket to the
East Asian Treasures at the ROM tour includes a timed entry ticket to the Mayan exhibition.
In an exclusive “doors open” event in the Distillery District, meet Canadian architect, Brigitte Shim, in the setting of her award-winning design, the Corkin Gallery.
Together with Jane Corkin, the gallery owner, we will be taken on a behind-the-scenes tour of one of Canada’s
pre-eminent spaces for contemporary art.
More behind-the-scenes access arranged just for ARLIS/NA is a visit to the workshop of the Textile Department at the Royal Ontario Museum. Your visit will be hosted by ROM textile curators
who will introduce projects underway in the workshop. Join the Fashion, Textile & Costume tour to take advantage of this unique opportunity.
Which tours include visits to libraries and archives?
For those interested in seeing different library collections, the following tours will fit the bill: CLGA, Far Eastern Library at the Royal Ontario Museum, Fashion/Textile/Costume,
and First Nations Art & Culture. Of course, local art libraries will be expecting your visit; check web sites for hours and open days.
Karen McKenzie
Co-Chair, Local Arrangement, “Colouring outside the lines”
ARLIS/NA 40th annual conference, 29 March – 2 April 2012, Toronto, Canada
Chief Librarian
E.P.Taylor Research Library & Archives
Art Gallery of Ontario
317 Dundas St. W.
Toronto, ON M5T 1G4
Canada
PH 416-979-6660
FX 416-979-6602
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