Galeries Ontario / Ontario Galleries


The Galeries Ontario / Ontario Galleries, formerly Ontario Association of Art Galleries / Association Ontarienne des Galeries d’Art, is a Canadian art organization founded in 1968. It was incorporated in Ontario in 1970, and registered as a charitable organization. It is a successor organization to the Southern Ontario Gallery Group founded in 1947, renamed the Art Institute of Ontario in 1952. In December 2020 Ontario Association of Art Galleries / Association Ontarienne des Galeries d’Art rebranded to the name Galeries Ontario / Ontario Galleries which included new brand identity, logo, and website to better serve art organizations in Ontario and Canada.
GOG is an art service organization serving over 270 Public Art Galleries, museums, artist-run-centres, and arts organizations, through advocacy, professional development, and network-building. GOG fosters a sustainable, healthy, diverse public art gallery sector to further the visual arts as a key component of the cultural life of the province.
Zainub Verjee was appointed as the executive director in 2015.

Board of directors

Serving to AGM 2020
  • York Lethbridge - Board President
Serving to AGM 2021
  • Dawn Owen - Board Member
  • Glen Bloom - Board Member
  • Devyani Saltzman - Board Secretary
Serving to AGM 2022
  • Christian Bernard Singer - Board Vice-president
  • Robert Steven - Board Treasurer
Serving to AGM 2022
  • Shelley Falconer - Board Member
  • Ann MacDonald - Board Member
Serving to AGM 2023
  • Nahed Mansour - Board Member
Ex-Officio
  • Zainub Verjee

Founding member galleries

There are eleven founding members of the modern organization. The founding members are:

Services

Advocacy

GOG's advocacy initiatives are a pillar of their service to the sector. These services include lobbying, outreach and education, among others. The organization works on behalf of public art galleries, and the cultural sector in Canada as a whole, to increase public awareness of issues affecting the visual arts and culture sectors in Ontario and Canada.

Professional Development

GOG produces professional development opportunities designed to increase the capacity of their members to navigate and advance in the cultural sector, taking the form of workshops, think tanks, symposiums and other initiatives. These professional development opportunities cover a wide range of relevant topics, including emerging technologies, new ways of working, accessibility, strategy, and engagement. The programmes are mainly tailored for emerging to senior-level arts professionals working in Ontario's public art galleries, but are often applicable to arts professionals across the board. GOG's membership program and various initiatives also serve as tools for network building to strengthen the body of public galleries across Ontario.

Membership

Most member galleries participate in a reciprocal admissions program, where membership of one gallery gives admission to the others. The organization provides a liaison between galleries and the Ontario Arts Council.
Members can join as an institution, individual or business.
GOG's membership consists of over 270 art museums, public art galleries, artist-run centres, visual arts organizations, professional colleagues, and friends across Ontario, including:

Selected publications

  • Roche, Roger. 1972