Ukrainian Culture in Ontario Museums

Join us for a member check-in! Back in 2020, the OMA started member check-ins as a way for the museum community to reconnect, share updates, and have an informal chat. Two years later, the social context of the world – and museums – has changed. As have the roles of museums. But what exactly are those roles? What are the responsibilities of museums in 2022? What is the role of museums in addressing urgent social issues such as homelessness/houselessness, racial justice, indigenous reconciliation, and climate change? How can museums contribute to progressive discourse in the public realm without being performative?

This session, facilitated by Workers Arts & Heritage Centre (WAHC) and Myseum of Toronto, invites participants to share the challenges and barriers to doing this work, as well as strategies for engaging communities around difficult conversations.

Do you have a topic you want to discuss? Share it with museum workers in Ontario by hosting a member check-in! Email your proposal to PD Program Manager Mary Collier at pd@museumsontario.ca.

Member Check-ins will be held on Zoom.

Register HERE. 

Speakers:

Thank you for joining us in celebrating Ontario's museums, their staff and volunteers, and their community contributions throughout #HeritageWeek! We saw great engagement across social media, highlighting that museums serve every community in the province through programs and services. Ontario museums for community recovery.

Let's keep sharing the value of museums!
We invite members to continue using the graphics the OMA provided to raise awareness of the important contributions of museums, especially during pandemic recovery. You can use hashtags #MuseumsConnectON and #ONpoli. 
Download a set of graphics HERE.

May is Museum Month / Mai, Mois des Musées is just around the corner, and another opportunity to celebrate Ontario's vibrant and vital museums! Please look for our May is Museum Month kit in the coming weeks.

The Ontario Museum Association stands with colleagues around the globe in solidarity with the Ukrainian people, with particular thoughts for colleagues and friends at the Ukrainian Museum of Canada, Ontario Branch; the Taras Shevchenko Museum; and the Ukrainian Canadian Art Foundation - KUMF™ Gallery, and all others who are deeply affected by this war. We echo the statement of the International Council of Museums (ICOM), expressing concern for the "risks faced by museum professionals as well as the threats to cultural heritage because of this armed conflict".

Learn more about and consider supporting the Canada Ukraine Foundation and the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.

Read the full statement from ICOM HERE.

Learn more about and consider supporting these three Ontario museums below:

• Ukrainian Museum of Canada, Ontario Branch
• Taras Shevchenko Museum
• Ukrainian Canadian Art Foundation – KUMF Gallery

Learn more about Ukrainian culture at these Ontario Museums:

The Honourable Elizabeth Dowdeswell, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, and John Ecker, Chair of the Ontario Heritage Trust, presented projects and individuals who made exceptional contributions to heritage conservation with the 2021 Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Awards during a virtual ceremony on February 24, 2022.

Museum recipients include: 

• William Thompson of Halton County Radial Railway Museum, Grimsby Museum, and Nelles Manor Heritage House (Lifetime Achievement)
• Niagara Parks Power Station (Excellence in Conservation)
• Craigleith Heritage Depot (Community Leadership Award) 
• The City of Toronto’s Awakenings Program (Community Leadership Award) 
• The Freedom Project at Heritage Hall by the Guelph Black Heritage Society (Community Leadership Award)
• Shannon Prince of Buxton National Site & Museum (Thomas Symons Award for Commitment to Conservation)

Read the full News Article HERE. 

Glenbow has announced a transformative $35-million donation from the family of JR Shaw, including an endowment that will make it the first major Canadian museum to offer free general admission, forever. The downtown Calgary building that houses Glenbow and its collection is currently undergoing a massive top-to-bottom renovation that will transform 312,000 square feet of space into one of the most vibrant and inclusive art museums in North America. When it reopens, the building will be renamed JR Shaw Centre for Arts & Culture.

Read the full News Release HERE. 

The National Gallery of Canada (NGC) announced on February 8, 2022, the creation of a Department of Indigenous Ways and Decolonization, and the appointments of its first Vice President, Steven Loft, effective February 7, 2022, and first Director, Michelle LaVallee, effective March 21, 2022. The creation of this department and establishment of two senior positions mark a new key milestone in the implementation of the National Gallery of Canada’s first-ever Strategic Plan Transform Together launched last spring.

Read the full News Release HERE. 

The historic Wing Sang Building, the oldest building in Vancouver Chinatown, will be the permanent site of the Chinese Canadian Museum. The Province of BC is providing $27.5 million to the Chinese Canadian Museum Society of British Columbia to support continued planning and operations of the society, as well as the purchase of the historic Wing Sang Building at 51 East Pender St.

Read the full News Article HERE. 

The Board of Directors of Museum of Health Care at Kingston is pleased to announce the hiring of a new Curator. Welcome Rowena McGowan! Rowena hails from beautiful Alberta and will begin her curatorship at the Museum on March 1st, 2022. Rowena holds Bachelor’s degrees in Biology and Archaeology, and graduated with a Master’s degree in Museum Studies from the University of Toronto in 2016.

Read the full News Release HERE. 

Congratulations to Henrick Sales and Brannavy Jeyasundaram who were announced as the new Co-Executive Directors of the Toronto War Museum this Tuesday, March 1! Prior to their nomination, both were researchers and curators for the Ward Museum's 2020 Block by Block program for Agincourt. The co-directors are artists who have extensive experience engaging with marginalized communities to share stories and build collective memory. 

Read more HERE.

Carole Condé and Karl Beveridge are visual artists from Hamilton, Ontario, and Ottawa, Ontario, respectively. Over the last 45 years, they have collaborated with various trade union and community organizations in the production of their staged photographic work. Their work has been exhibited across Canada and abroad in both the trade union movement and public art galleries and museums.

Read the full news release HERE. 

What’s covered in this session?

This information session will focus only on the requirements that organizations need to meet to be eligible for OTF funding. Topics of discussion include:

• Types of eligible applicants
• Financial statements requirements
• Board of Directors information
• OTF policies

Read more and register HERE. 

What’s covered in this session?

• A general overview of the Resilient Communities Fund
• Highlight changes to the funding stream
• Top tips and common pitfalls when submitting a grant application

Read more and register HERE. 

Using themes from the best-selling business book by Greg McKeown, this webinar explores the concept of Essentialism, a technique for prioritization that suggests we should relentlessly pursue less but pursue better. It’s the idea of choosing to produce quality over quantity. And more than that, it’s the idea of choosing to produce quality on the RIGHT TASKS! 

Nonprofit professionals wear many hats in their organizations and this session will help you figure out how to direct your attention to the tasks that will have the most impact for your mission. 

Read more and register HERE. 

On Thursday, March 17, join the Toronto Railway Museum and Corina Moore for an online lecture. Corina Moore will present Diversity and Inclusion: Choose to Change, featuring her own journey to becoming the first woman President and CEO of Ontario Northland. Moore’s presentation will highlight women in the railway industry, including her own career journey, the advantages of having a diverse team, and how to drive long-term change.

Read more and register HERE. 

The Call for Papers of all 32 International Committees for #ICOMPrague2022 ICOM is open! You have the opportunity to apply until 31 March 2022! Do not hesitate and become a part of the official scientific programme of the 26th General Conference ICOM Prague 2022. You can apply through the online form. 

Abstract submissions deadline is 31 March 2022.

Read the full News Article HERE. 

The National Trust in association with the Canadian Association of Heritage Professionals invites your essential participation in the transformation of the heritage sector – currently underway with the pan-Canadian Heritage Reset initiative and culminating at this conference in Fall 2022.

The submission deadline is April 8, 2022.

Read more about it HERE.