Kingston artist Dave Gordon leads a watercolour course. Photo credit: Pat Sullivan
Kingston photographer Preston Schiedel speaks to participants in a workshop in the Exposures series.
Programs & Events
Adult Programs
The Art Centre boasts a distinguished tradition of lectures, artist's talks, curatorial and docent tours and public symposia related to our exhibitions and collections.
Highlight Tours
19 January, 12:15
16 February, 12:15
15 March, 12:15
Art Matters
Thursdays, 12:15 pm
Join us for informal talks in our exhibitions.
9 February
Alicia Boutilier, Curator of Canadian Historical
Art, tours our Keywork exhibition Portrait of Eliza.
Spiritual Rococo: Decor and Divinity from
the Salons of Paris to the Missions of
Paraguay, Gauvin Bailey
Thursday 26 January 7 pm
The Rococo style of the 1700s has often been dismissed
as playful and decadent. In this lecture,
Professor Gauvin Bailey corrects this view, demonstrating
how Rococo decoration expressed sincere spiritual
purpose in French society, and even conveyed this
message architecturally in the evangelical missions to
the New World.
Gauvin Bailey is the new Bader Chair in Southern
Baroque Art in the Department of Art at Queen’s.
global implications.
Isabel Bader Research Fellowship in
Textile Conservation Lecture:
Caterina Florio, "Textile
Conservation and the Museum Public"
Sunday 29 January, 2 pm
Caterina Florio was the first recipient of the Isabel Bader Research Fellowship in Textile Conservation, offered by the Art Centre and Master of Art Conservation Program. During her residency last winter, she worked on several items of historical dress currently seen in our exhibition Adornment, and conducted research on the relationship between textile conservation practice and the perceptions of visitors who view such objects. Her talk will address the findings of her research, the treatment she applied to selected objects, and how different institutions, such as museums, historic houses and art galleries, approach the issue of viewers’ expectations. What activities are in place to guide and educate the public to a better understanding of the conservation process, and how can the situation be improved?
Caterina Florio was the first recipient of the Isabel Bader Research Fellowship in Textile Conservation, offered by the Art Centre and Master of Art Conservation Program. During her residency last winter, she worked on several items of historical dress currently seen in our exhibition Adornment, and conducted research on the relationship between textile conservation practice and the perceptions of visitors who view such objects. Her talk will address the findings of her research, the treatment she applied to selected objects, and how different institutions, such as museums, historic houses and art galleries, approach the issue of viewers’ expectations. What activities are in place to guide and educate the public to a better understanding of the conservation process, and how can the situation be improved?
Bon Voyage
Natalka Husar, Artist
Sunday 5 February, 2 pm
We are pleased to collaborate with the Organization
of Kingston Women Artists in hosting a talk by Toronto
artist Natalka Husar, who is also the juror for their
annual exhibition. Working persistently in the medium
of painting, Husar has exhibited widely across
Canada and is represented in numerous public collections,
including the National Gallery of Canada.
Approaching her art like a playwright, Husar invents
psychologically charged characters, including nurse
and stewardess alter-egos, to address her relationship
to contemporary history as well as to painting. In her
illustrated talk, she will take the audience on a timetraveling
trip between her upbringing in New Jersey,
her studio in Toronto and her wanderlust search for
inspiration and meaning as she "stalks her muse
through contemporary Ukraine."
Preserving the Gods: Early Twentieth
Century Debates in the Conservation of
South Indian Bronze Icons in the
Government Museum, Madras,
Sanchita Balachandran
Thursday 8 March, 7 pm
Where are ‘living’ religious icons best preserved, and
who should be entrusted with their care? The
Government Museum, Madras (now Chennai),
renowned for its collection of mainly Hindu south
Indian bronze idols dating from the third century
onwards, was at the centre of this debate by the late
1800s. By 1930, the Museum boasted the first laboratory
in India dedicated specifically to the conservation
of bronze images, and became well known for its
innovative treatments which restored heavily corroded
artifacts to their original splendour. Recent research
into the Museum records and the Tamil Nadu State
Archives reveals intense debates over who could claim
the right to preserving these icons. This talk examines
how these fierce contestations influenced the conservation
of bronze images at the Government Museum,
and fundamentally shaped the way in which they
would be understood as art objects. Although the talk
is specific to the Indian context, the issues have ramifications
for all museums.
We are pleased to partner with the Departments of Art
and Classics in hosting this public lecture by Sanchita
Balachandran, a Visiting Scholar. The visit is supported
by the Principal’s Development Fund. Ms.
Balachandran is the Curator and Conservator at the
Johns Hopkins Archaeological Museum, Baltimore,
with extensive experience in museums and in the field.
A reception will follow her lecture.
Tattoo Art Dialogue:
Bernard Clark and Cory Ferguson
Sunday 11 March, 2 pm
Explore two perspectives on the surging global phenomenon
of tattoos. Our exhibition Bernard Clark:
Tattoo Portraits features surreal composite portraits of
tattooed subjects in landscape and architectural settings.
The Kingston artist, known for his documentary
photographs of ink culture, here highlights the contemporary
role of the body as a refuge of stable identity
and personal expression. Oakville-based Cory Ferguson
is an internationally renowned skin artist who has just
produced his own book of hand-drawn designs, One
Hundred Mandalas. Clark and Ferguson will each
present a short illustrated talk on their work, then participate
in a dialogue on creating and photographing
tattoos. A question and answer period will follow.
Art Classes and Workshops
Classes and workshops are open to Queen's students and adults from the community, and include access to our exhibitions. To register in person visit our Reception Desk during regular hours and pay with credit card, cash or debit card. Space is limited; registration is confirmed with payment. To register by phone: call 613.533.2190 and pay with VISA or Mastercard.
Introduction to Drawing
19 January to 15 March , Thursdays 6-9 pm
Kingston artist Dave Gordon leads an eight-week
course on drawing. Students will use a variety of materials
and techniques to develop skills in handling line,
tone, shape, texture and composition. Personal creativity
is encouraged and the class will explore experimental
techniques in one or more of the sessions. Students
can also view contemporary drawings in our current
exhibition Intimate Theatre.
An experienced artist and teacher, Dave Gordon has
taught courses in drawing and watercolour at the Art
Centre and has several paintings on view in our exhibition
Discontinued Colours.
Fee: Students and G.A. members $125 (HST included);
non-G.A. members $150 (HST included). To register
call 613.533.2190 and pay with VISA or Mastercard.
Cash or debit payments may be done in person at
Reception. A materials list is supplied with registration.
Please note: no class Thursday 23 February.
To view all programs offered in the coming weeks, please refer to our Events Calendar.
To receive a regular updates on our exhibitions and programs, please email Matthew Hills or consider the benefits of Membership.