National Gallery of Canada | Pablo Rodriguez seeks clarifications from the CA

During a press scrum in Ottawa on Wednesday, Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez announced that he had written to François Leon, president of the National Gallery of Canada’s board of trustees, seeking clarification on the current crisis. Museum organization. During the question and answer session in both houses, the minister himself criticized the matter.

After insisting Wednesday morning that the National Gallery of Canada is an independent institution, Pablo Rodriguez said he was Mr.^me Lyon expressed his “deep concern” about the events in progress at the museum, which began the process of decolonization of its management and its programming and led to the dismissal of important executives.

“I have asked him for a quick response on the solutions that the board of directors intends to bring forward,” the minister said, adding that he was concerned about the current climate at NGC and wanted the board to “explain what is going on”.

In recent days, players in the Canadian art world, former director of the NGC, Mark Mayer, collector Pierre Lassonde or art historians such as curators and Diana Nemiroff, have expressed their surprise at the way the NGC is currently run. An explanation is sought.

Despite several requests from the media, the chair of the board of directors, François Leon, a Montreal businessman who is president and senior partner of private equity firm DGC Capital, declined an interview on Nov. 17 to explain why the museum. Deputy Director and Chief Curator, Kitty Scott, Curator of Indigenous Art, Greg Hill, Director of Curatorial and Technical Research, Stephen Gritt, and Senior Communications Manager, Denise Ciel, were fired.

The museum refuses to provide explanations for these removals, promotes a privacy policy, and has put forward the application of a strategic plan aimed at “decolonizing” the museum organization. There was a heated debate on the situation of NGC in both houses on Wednesday. Bloc member for Drummond, Martin Champoux, criticized the NGC’s reluctance to hold an exhibition dedicated to Riopelle, on the centenary of his birth, which was originally due to take place next October. .

According to the National Gallery of Canada Riopelle was ‘an older white male artist’ and accordingly Press, its director general did everything, Mr. President, to prevent a demonstration in his honor, initiated the deputy Champoux. Can the Minister tell us when his Government decided to exclude fine arts from the profession of Museum of Fine Arts? »

Minister Rodriguez replied that his colleague was “in the field.” “Riopelle, Mr. President, Riopelle is a giant among giants, one of the greatest artists among us. The government is and will be there to celebrate this great artist Riopelle. »

Deputy Champoux continued with a second intervention: “A quick phone call from the Minister of Heritage at the museum [des beaux-arts du Canada] As it does nothing in the National Gallery of Canada file, this drift can be stopped. This he has to approve or comply with the directive from the Minister of Maintenance of Museum of Fine Arts. Because what is happening with the museum, Mr. President, is that they are literally turning it into an ideological propaganda tool rather than a place of preservation and enhancement of fine art. […] When does a minister cease to be a campaign minister and become a heritage minister? »

Pablo Rodríguez responded by saying he was offended by the comment and assured the Black MP that the Riopelle exhibition would take place. Joined by PressCollector, patron and businessman Pierre Lassonde, also a former executive director of the NGC, described how Sasha Sousa, who left the organization last June, did everything to oppose a tribute to Riopelle in Ottawa.

“She tried to kill the exhibition several times,” Mr. Lassonde said. Only with the intervention and insistence of the Riopelle Foundation did she agree to host it, but reluctantly. It’s unthinkable not to have an exhibition by one of the most important Canadian painters on the international scene! But she wanted to reduce budgets, hold the show in a smaller room, and reduce the number of works to be performed. It’s amazing. It took him a year and a half to appoint a curator…” Art historian Sylvie Lacerte will sign the Riopelle exhibition in Ottawa.