10 AM Coffee and Tea in Druxy's ROM Cafe, Level B1 (11:00 AM Lecture in Eaton Theatre)

Speaker: Arlene Gehmacher, ROM Curator, is an Art Historian specializing in imagery of Canada from the 18th century to the present, primarily in the visual idioms of Western European art.

Into the (Rex) Woods: Trails of a Canadian Illustrator's Archive with Arlene Gehmacher

Rex Woods was one of Canada’s premier commercial illustrators in the 1930s - 1950s. He is also the artist of the 1967 copy of the “Fathers of Confederation,” the famous painting by Robert Harris that is believed to have been destroyed in the Canadian Parliament Building fire of 1916. His range of subject matter is enormous, and provides a window as much into how Canada was reflected in as it was shaped by the popular press. We (ROM) have his career and personal archives, including paintings, sketches, photographs, research files, diaries, correspondence. The Rex Woods display is, based on experience of anecdotal responses to the Sigmund Samuel Gallery of Canada, one of gallery’s displays that most engages visitors. For that reason Arlene has been cataloguing the collection, including archival documents, to make it accessible to the public.

Included in Museum admission

Location: Signy and Cléophée Eaton Theatre, Level B1

Contact:  416.586.5797                 programs@rom.on.ca

Contexts talks are supported by The Currelly Society