Art Gallery of Nova Scotia Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
The outside of the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia's main building in Halifax.
Established	1908; 117 years ago (1908)
Location	1723 Hollis Street Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Type	Art museum
Collection size	Over 18,000
Visitors	45,455 (2017)

The Art Gallery of Nova Scotia (AGNS) is a public art museum located in Halifax, Nova Scotia. It is the official art gallery for the province. The gallery is in downtown Halifax and uses two historic buildings, giving it about 6,200 square metres (67,000 sq ft) of space.

The museum first opened in 1908 with the name Nova Scotia Museum of Fine Arts. It was renamed the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia in 1975. The gallery moved into its main building in 1988 and expanded into a second building next door in 1998.

Today, the gallery's permanent collection has more than 18,000 artworks. These pieces were created by artists from Nova Scotia, other parts of Canada, and around the world. You can see art from this collection at the main gallery in Halifax and at a smaller branch in Yarmouth. The gallery also hosts special travelling art shows from other places.

History of the Gallery
- A Branch in Yarmouth
- Plans for a New Building
The Permanent Collection
See also

History of the Gallery

The art museum was founded in 1908 to take care of 200 artworks owned by the province of Nova Scotia. For many years, the gallery didn't have a permanent home. Its collection was moved to several different places, including the old gunpowder magazine at Citadel Hill!

The entrance to the gallery at the Provincial Building. The museum expanded into this building in 1998.

In 1988, the gallery finally found a permanent home in the Dominion Building. This historic building was constructed in 1867. Ten years later, in 1998, the gallery expanded. It took over two floors of the Provincial Building right next door.

Between the two buildings is a public space called Ondaatje Court, which often features large sculptures. Underneath the courtyard, a large underground room connects the two buildings, creating more space for art. During this expansion, the gallery also made a special home for the house of folk artist Maud Lewis.

A Branch in Yarmouth

In 2006, the AGNS opened a smaller branch in Yarmouth, a town in southwestern Nova Scotia. This branch, called the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia Western Branch, allows more people in the province to see works from the gallery's collection. It is located in a former Royal Bank of Canada building from 1913. The branch closed for a while because of smoke damage but reopened in July 2021.

Plans for a New Building

In 2008, the gallery reported that its main building in Halifax was "seriously inadequate." The historic building makes it hard to control the temperature and humidity, which is important for keeping the art safe from damage.

Plans were made for a new, modern building on the Halifax Boardwalk. The governments of Nova Scotia and Canada promised money for the project. However, in 2022, the plans were put on hold because the cost of building had increased too much.

The Permanent Collection

As of 2019, the gallery's permanent collection includes over 18,000 works of art. The collection features pieces from more than 2,000 different artists. Before a new piece of art is added to the collection, it must be approved by several groups, including art experts and community members.

The Maud Lewis Collection

The restored house of folk artist Maud Lewis is on display inside the gallery.

The gallery has the world's largest public collection of art by Maud Lewis, a famous Nova Scotian folk artist. It owns 55 of her paintings. The Maud Lewis exhibit is one of the most popular attractions at the museum.

Besides her paintings, the gallery also has her tiny, brightly painted house. After Lewis died, the Government of Nova Scotia bought her home to preserve it. In 1996, the house was carefully moved inside the gallery and restored. Now, visitors can see the colourful home where she lived and worked.

The Annie Leibovitz Photographs

In 2013, the museum received a large collection of 2,070 photographs by the famous American photographer Annie Leibovitz. The collection was a gift to the gallery. It includes many of her well-known portraits of celebrities and public figures. While the gallery owns the photos, there have been disagreements about payments and rights, which has affected how they can be displayed.

Other Highlights

The collection also features art from many First Nations artists, including Kent Monkman. One of his paintings is one of the largest works in the gallery, measuring 3.5 by 7 metres (11 by 23 ft). The gallery also collects works by many other important Nova Scotia artists, such as Nancy Edell, Charlotte Lindgren, and Carol Fraser.