Collection LA.SC024 - Photographs of Canadian artists collection

Identity area

Reference code

LA.SC024

Title

Photographs of Canadian artists collection

Date(s)

  • [189-]-ca.2000 (Creation)

Level of description

Collection

Extent and medium

719 photographs

Context area

Name of creator

(1933-)

Administrative history

The Edward P. Taylor Library & Archives at the Art Gallery of Ontario is a leading Canadian centre for research in art. It collects published and archival materials related to the collection, exhibitions and public programs of the AGO, and Canadian art in general with a geographic focus on Ontario.
The library holds more than 380,000 items including books, rare books, artists’ books, multiples, and artist files. Archival collections include the archives of the Art Gallery of Ontario and extensive special collections (artists’ archives and related collections).
The library was established in the library of the historic Grange House in 1933 when the gallery received a donation of 200 books on art from the Carnegie foundation. That same year the library opened to gallery staff and members of the public, and was soon supervised by a librarian.
The gallery’s Stage II expansion in 1977 provided a larger facility for the library, which was renamed the Edward P. Taylor Reference Library and became part of the Curatorial Division. The current facility for the Library & Archives was opened in 1993 with the gallery’s Stage III expansion. In 2017 the entrance of the Library & Archives was expanded to include a lounge space as part of the revitalization of Grange Park.
The AGO Archives, which consists of records created by the gallery, was established in September 1975 under the direction of Margaret Machell, who worked as Keeper of the Grange and AGO Archivist until her retirement in 1981. Following her departure, the Archives reported to the gallery’s administrative branch until 1989 when it merged with the Reference Library to become the Edward P. Taylor Research Library & Archives. The department was renamed the Edward P. Taylor Library & Archives in 2017.

Archival history

Photographs in the Photographs of Canadian Artists collection were acquired by the curatorial department of the Art Museum of Toronto (now the Art Gallery of Ontario/AGO) beginning in 1912. The photos remained there until the 1920s when they were transferred to the AGO library, where they continued to accumulate until ca. 2000, when accruals ceased.

Immediate source of acquisition or transfer

AGO credit line: various

Content and structure area

Scope and content

Collection comprises photographic prints submitted with replies to biographical questionnaires sent by the AGO to Canadian artists between 1912 and 1984. The collection was augmented with 239 photographs purchased from Toronto photographer M.O. Hammond (1876–1934) between 1927 and 1934. Collection also includes photos and copy prints obtained in connection with Gallery exhibitions and photos acquired by other Gallery departments, with news photographs and reproductions of photos from agencies and other institutions. Photos were added to the collection up to the end of the 1990s.
The photographic prints in the collection are chiefly gelatin silver prints but also include chromogenic colour prints, diffusion transfer prints and photos produced by other processes. The collection includes images of 598 artists in studio portraits and snapshots, at exhibition openings and in their studios, and in group photos. Some photographs are annotated with biographical details on verso or in accompanying textual records.

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling

Accruals

No further accruals are expected.

System of arrangement

The collection is arranged in a single series, sorted alphabetically by artists’ surnames.

Conditions of access and use area

Conditions governing access

Open. Access to Special Collections by appointment. Please contact the reference desk for more information.

Conditions governing reproduction

Various copyright holders. Copyright may still rest with photographers of items in the collection. It is the researcher’s responsibility to obtain permission to publish any part of the collection.

Language of material

  • English

Script of material

Language and script notes

Physical characteristics and technical requirements

Allied materials area

Existence and location of originals

Existence and location of copies

Related units of description

Notes area

Alternative identifier(s)

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Name access points

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Description control area

Description identifier

Institution identifier

Rules and/or conventions used

Status

Final

Level of detail

Full

Dates of creation revision deletion

Description prepared 2016.

Language(s)

  • English

Script(s)

Sources

Archivist's note

Description prepared by Zoë Lepiano and Gary Fitzgibbon.

Accession area

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