McMaster Museum of Art facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
McMaster Museum of Art

Former name	McMaster Art Gallery (1967–1994)
Established	1967
Location	McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario
Type	Art museum
Visitors	30,000 (2015–16)
Public transit access	Hamilton Street Railway: 1 King 5 Delaware

The McMaster Museum of Art (MMA) is a cool art gallery at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. It's a public museum, which means anyone can visit! You can find it right in the middle of the campus, connected to the main library.

Discovering the Museum's Past

McMaster University started way back in 1887. Soon after, they began collecting art, mostly portraits of important people. In the 1930s, they received a gift of European prints. This made them start collecting art more seriously. By the 1950s, they were already showing art exhibits regularly in the library.

In 1967, the museum got its own special building. It was called the McMaster Art Gallery back then. Dr. Togo Salmon, a history professor, helped make this happen. Later, in 1994, the gallery moved to a bigger spot and changed its name to the McMaster Museum of Art. Five years after that, the building was named after Alvin A. Lee. He was a big supporter who helped make the new building possible.

What You Can Do at the Museum

The McMaster Museum of Art always has something new to see! They show art from different times, like old art, modern art, and art made today.

Besides showing art, the museum also has fun events:

• Lunch and Learn: You can eat lunch and learn about art.
• Artist Talks: Artists come to talk about their work.
• Workshops: You can try making art yourself!

The museum also has a special room called the Education Gallery. It's used for talks and studying. It even has a small library with books about art and artists.

If you are a member of another art gallery in Ontario, you might get free entry to the MMA! This is thanks to a program called the Ontario Association of Art Galleries.

Exploring the Art Collection

The museum's art collection has grown a lot over the years. Many professors and art committees helped choose new artworks. For example, Professors Karl Denner and George Wallace helped build a great collection of German Expressionist art in the 1960s.

A big moment for the museum was in the 1980s. A jeweler named Herman Levy gave them over 200 European artworks. He later gave the museum a lot of money to buy even more art from outside North America. More recently, the Donald Murray Shepherd Trust also gave money to buy modern European art.

The museum has over 7,000 art pieces! It's one of the best university art collections in Canada. Here are some types of art you can find:

• Impressionist and Post-Impressionist Art: This includes famous painters like Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh.
• Early 20th-century German Prints: Artworks by artists like Otto Dix and Käthe Kollwitz.
• European Old Master Paintings: Art from the 16th century, including artists like Sir Thomas Lawrence.
• Modern and Contemporary European Art: Works by artists such as Marcel Duchamp and Anish Kapoor.
• Canadian Art: A wide range of Canadian art, from the Group of Seven to modern artists like Barbara Astman.
• Inuit Art: Art made by Inuit people, especially prints and sculptures from Cape Dorset.
• Antiquities: Very old objects from ancient times.

The museum also has a "Paper Centre" with over 4,000 prints, drawings, and watercolors. You can see these by making an appointment.

And guess what? The MMA is also home to the Bruce Brace Coin Collection! This collection has old coins and medallions from ancient Rome and Greece. These coins help us learn about daily life and trade from long, long ago.

Famous Artworks You Can See

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  Mary Beale, Portrait of Charles Beale, around 1660

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  J. M. W. Turner, Boston in Lincolnshire, around 1833

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  Camille Pissarro, Apple Trees in Bloom, 1870

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  Gustave Courbet, Around Ornans, 1874

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  Gustave Caillebotte, Sailboats at Anchor on the Seine, Argenteuil, 1883

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  Vincent van Gogh, Still Life with Ginger Jar and Onions, 1885

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  Claude Monet, Waterloo Bridge, Sunlight Effect, 1903

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  Tom Thomson, Algonquin Park, 1916

Working Together: Museum Projects

The McMaster Museum of Art often works with different departments at McMaster University. They create cool projects and exhibits together, using what university experts know.

Here are some examples of their team projects:

See also

• List of art museums
• List of museums in Ontario