A WOOLLY, WOOLLY GOOD EXHIBIT: When you’re at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, don’t forget to check out the wall of knitted sweaters. (PHOTOS Liz Campbell/Toronto Today)
It starts as soon as Isla (nearly 3 years old) spots three bronze wolves near the entrance. She heads straight over to make friends, climbing on the back of one. Our visit to the McMichael Canadian Art Collection is already a success.
Further along the path to the entrance, it takes only a minute of studying Bill Vazan’s pictographic granite block for her to find an enormous turtle image on its surface. She’s intrigued. And right in front of the gallery, she comments the mama bear is talking to the baby.
The sculptures leading to the gallery’s front doors have already captured this little girl’s interest.
Capturing the hearts of children and adults is the point here. Set in beautiful natural surroundings visible from many of the gallery’s large windows, the McMichael has to be one of Canada’s most scenic art venues.
And the massive wooden entry hall continues the natural theme.
We head straight up the ramp to the current exhibition, “Fashionality, Dress and Identity in Contemporary Canadian Art.” It’s a big topic for a little girl, but Isla finds lots to see and discuss. The display covers everything from a display of dozens of aprons assembled by Newfoundland artist, Barbara Hunt, to three pairs of shoes — a man’s, a woman’s and a child’s — that mechanically tip tap as if there were feet inside them (a big favourite as she tries to emulate them).
And a giant shirt and single sock next door have her thinking about size. In a world where nearly everything is too big for her, she’s amazed to find something too big for daddy.
But probably most intriguing for Isla is a wall of with hundreds of tiny woollen sweaters, knitted by Ontario-based artist Michele Karch-Ackerman and several volunteers, in commemoration of Canadian soldiers who fell in World War I. Titled “The Lost Boys”, a reminder of Peter Pan’s companions, the idea is that these fallen too, will never grow old. Seeing a small child next to this display is particularly poignant for me.
Children and art galleries are a great mixture. And nowhere is this more significant than at the McMichael. The colour and vibrancy of the paintings of the Group of Seven and those of artists like native artist, Norval Morriseau, are particularly appealing to children. And through their eyes, we can often see colours, shapes and patterns we might have missed.
As we inspected A.Y. Jackson’s painting “Red Maple”, Isla casually comments, “Look, there’s lots of water.” And I was just looking at the maple!
I watched a grandmother standing in front of the same painting with a five-year-old in tow ask the child, “Do you think that’s summer time?” The little girl looked carefully and pronounced firmly, “No, it’s the fall. See, those leaves are red.”
The point is that children can develop an early appreciation of art if we take the time to expose them to it.
The McMichael makes a special effort to include families in their programming. Family Sundays — usually the second Sunday of each month — offers family activities like guided nature walks, building a campsite, painting in the woods, and more. There are even performances — this weekend, Duffelbag Theatre presented Robin Hood. These are all free with admission.
In August, Family Sunday is part of the Toronto IndigenUs Festival and will include an Aboriginal ceremony, story-telling by an Anishinabe elder, and canoe rides (weather permitting).
While the ages of children vary for different activities, they are undoubtedly a wonderful way to introduce little people to art and the process by which art is created. Indeed, if you choose a Sunday when the Ontario Plein Air Society set up their easels on the McMichael grounds and paint, (Aug. 26 this month), your family can watch artists in action.
Become a member of McMichael and you can return to the grounds and gallery as often as you like. A cool walk through the colourful galleries is a wonderful weekend activity on a hot summer day. And these paintings can toss a palette of colours into the bleakest winter day.
A family membership ($85) provides unlimited free parking and access to all the galleries and many programs for two adults and up to four children for a whole year.
At the end of our visit, Isla stops again at the three wolves. She’s patently taken with these three huge sculptures, and announces gravely, “I want to stay with the woofs.”
McMichael Canadian Art Collection, 10365 Islington Ave. Kleinberg. 905-893-1121.
Check at www.mcmichael.com for exhibition and activity information. Note that the Fashionality exhibit is only on until Sept. 3.
