Art & Architecture - The Globe and Mail

Art Gallery of Ontario chief curator Julian Cox steps down after eight years

Cox joined the AGO in 2018 after leaving the Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco

As the AGO’s chief curator and deputy director, Julian Cox championed several notable acquisitions and oversaw the founding of the Department of the Arts of Global Africa and the Diaspora.

As the AGO’s chief curator and deputy director, Julian Cox championed several notable acquisitions and oversaw the founding of the Department of the Arts of Global Africa and the Diaspora.

2 min read

March 3, 2026

As the AGO’s chief curator and deputy director, Julian Cox championed several notable acquisitions and oversaw the founding of the Department of the Arts of Global Africa and the Diaspora.

As the AGO’s chief curator and deputy director, Julian Cox championed several notable acquisitions and oversaw the founding of the Department of the Arts of Global Africa and the Diaspora.

Art Gallery of Ontario chief curator Julian Cox steps down after eight years

2 min read

February 27, 2026

Nan Goldin, photographer, talks to the press at the exhibition "Nan Goldin. This Will Not End Well" at the Neue Nationalgalerie with the press. The retrospective at the Neue Nationalgalerie is the first comprehensive insight into Nan Goldin's work from 1980 to the present day.

Nan Goldin, photographer, talks to the press at the exhibition "Nan Goldin. This Will Not End Well" at the Neue Nationalgalerie with the press. The retrospective at the Neue Nationalgalerie is the first comprehensive insight into Nan Goldin's work from 1980 to the present day.

opinion

The AGO didn’t just embroil itself in controversy over Nan Goldin’s work – it missed out on a magnificent piece of art

Marsha Lederman

4 min read

February 26, 2026

Italy makes its art treasures accessible for blind visitors

February 26, 2026

Nan Goldin, Stendhal Syndrome, 2024 (video still), single-channel video, Jointly owned by the Vancouver Art Gallery and Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, Purchased with funds from the Curators’ Council Fund for Women Artists and the Jean MacMillan Southam Fund, Image: © Nan Goldin, Courtesy of the Artist and Gagosian

Nan Goldin, Stendhal Syndrome, 2024 (video still), single-channel video, Jointly owned by the Vancouver Art Gallery and Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, Purchased with funds from the Curators’ Council Fund for Women Artists and the Jean MacMillan Southam Fund, Image: © Nan Goldin, Courtesy of the Artist and Gagosian

Understanding the politics of art gallery volunteer committees after the AGO’s failed Nan Goldin acquisition

7 min read

February 25, 2026

Nicholas Bell, ROM's new director.

Nicholas Bell, ROM's new director.

ROM names Glenbow Museum’s Nicholas Bell as director

2 min read

February 25, 2026

People tour the courtyard of the Louvre museum in Paris, Wednesday Feb. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla)

People tour the courtyard of the Louvre museum in Paris, Wednesday Feb. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla)

Louvre gets a new boss to help turn around the museum after brazen October heist

2 min read

February 24, 2026

FILE PHOTO: Laurence des Cars, president and director of the Louvre Museum, attends a hearing by the Cultural Affairs and Education Commission, one month after thieves stole treasures from the Louvre's Galerie d'Apollon (Apollo gallery), at the National Assembly in Paris, France, November 19, 2025. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier/File Photo

FILE PHOTO: Laurence des Cars, president and director of the Louvre Museum, attends a hearing by the Cultural Affairs and Education Commission, one month after thieves stole treasures from the Louvre's Galerie d'Apollon (Apollo gallery), at the National Assembly in Paris, France, November 19, 2025. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier/File Photo

Macron accepts resignation of Paris’s Louvre museum chief after jewel theft, strikes

1 min read

February 23, 2026

CONTACT_CarrieMaeWeems1 Carrie Mae Weems, Slow Fade to Black, 2010. Public Installation at Metro Hall, Toronto, 2019. Photo: Toni Hafkenscheid. Courtesy CONTACT Photography Festival, the artist, and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York, NY.

CONTACT_CarrieMaeWeems1 Carrie Mae Weems, Slow Fade to Black, 2010. Public Installation at Metro Hall, Toronto, 2019. Photo: Toni Hafkenscheid. Courtesy CONTACT Photography Festival, the artist, and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York, NY.

It’s a struggle raising money for the arts. Just ask Contact Photography Festival

4 min read

February 20, 2026

07: At her premature death in 2012, Sibyl Goldstein left behind about 1,000 paintings. Credit: Henry Chan

07: At her premature death in 2012, Sibyl Goldstein left behind about 1,000 paintings. Credit: Henry Chan

Free to a good home: Toronto gallery gives away Sybil Goldstein’s art

4 min read

February 18, 2026

Paul McCartney, Self - portrait. London , 1963.

Paul McCartney, Self - portrait. London , 1963.

Paul McCartney photo exhibit at AGO captures the pop-culture hurricane of Beatlemania

4 min read

February 17, 2026

Devyani Saltzman.

Devyani Saltzman.

Canadian programmer abruptly exits high-profile arts role at London’s Barbican Centre

2 min read

January 31, 2026

Sylvia Safdie has collected soil samples since 1977. Earth II brings together 500 of those samples, from places around the world.

Sylvia Safdie has collected soil samples since 1977. Earth II brings together 500 of those samples, from places around the world.

Nature meets culture in Sylvia Safdie’s art

3 min read

January 30, 2026

An exterior of the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), in Toronto, Tuesday, January 20, 2026. (Cole Burston/The Globe and Mail)

An exterior of the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), in Toronto, Tuesday, January 20, 2026. (Cole Burston/The Globe and Mail)

AGO dissolving committee that declined to acquire a Nan Goldin artwork

3 min read

January 30, 2026

The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), in Toronto, on Jan. 20. The gallery's modern and contemporary collections committee voted 11-9 against acquiring a work by artist Nan Goldin.

The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), in Toronto, on Jan. 20. The gallery's modern and contemporary collections committee voted 11-9 against acquiring a work by artist Nan Goldin.

Pressure mounts on AGO from Nan Goldin, some Jewish groups, after decision to not acquire artist’s work

5 min read

January 28, 2026

Edward Burtynsky In the Wake of Progress_photo by Jim Panou At FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre, In the Wake of Progress will be shown on three massive screens, and comprises photography and video that spans 40 years of Burtynsky’s career. St Catharines

Edward Burtynsky In the Wake of Progress_photo by Jim Panou At FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre, In the Wake of Progress will be shown on three massive screens, and comprises photography and video that spans 40 years of Burtynsky’s career. St Catharines

Edward Burtynsky returns to the Ontario hometown that inspired his photography career

5 min read

January 27, 2026

FILE - 2018 Kennedy Center Honoree composer Philip Glass arrives at the State Department for the Kennedy Center Honors State Department Dinner, Dec. 1, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf, File)

FILE - 2018 Kennedy Center Honoree composer Philip Glass arrives at the State Department for the Kennedy Center Honors State Department Dinner, Dec. 1, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf, File)

Composer Philip Glass cancels Kennedy Center symphony premiere after Trump takeover

2 min read

January 26, 2026

The newly redesigned Hamilton Children’s Museum includes a 3,800-square-foot expansion.

The newly redesigned Hamilton Children’s Museum includes a 3,800-square-foot expansion.

At the Hamilton Children’s Museum, a new extension plays with colour

Alex Bozikovic

3 min read

January 26, 2026

The Art Gallery of Ontario, in Toronto, on Jan. 20.

The Art Gallery of Ontario, in Toronto, on Jan. 20.

AGO trustee, major donor Judy Schulich led internal push to prevent Nan Goldin acquisition

4 min read

January 22, 2026

What: cSPACE
Where: Calgary, Alberta

What: cSPACE
Where: Calgary, Alberta

Arts spaces in Canada are scarce. Here are six that have found creative ways to exist

7 min read

January 21, 2026

An exterior of the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), in Toronto, Tuesday, January 20, 2026. (Cole Burston/The Globe and Mail)

An exterior of the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), in Toronto, Tuesday, January 20, 2026. (Cole Burston/The Globe and Mail)

AGO rocked by resignations after failed Nan Goldin acquisition

5 min read

January 16, 2026

A photograph of Richard Kastner taken from an online obituary.

A photograph of Richard Kastner taken from an online obituary.

Dozens of valuable artworks believed to be missing from Montreal home

2 min read

January 16, 2026

A piece being made for a new body of work by Dene artist, Melaw Nakehk’o, hangs in her studio in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories.

A piece being made for a new body of work by Dene artist, Melaw Nakehk’o, hangs in her studio in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories.

Inside the plan to bring the first public visual arts centre to Northwest Territories

8 min read

January 8, 2026

Great Art Explained includes paintings as historic as Leonardo Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, shown here at the Louvre in Paris in 2025.

Author and critic James Payne fell in love with art as a teenager on a school gallery visit when he encountered Mark Rothko's Seagram Murals, shown here at Tate Britain, but now on display at Tate Modern. (Photo by John Phillips/Getty Images)[LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 15: A gallery technician poses next to The Seagram Murals, by artist Mark Rothko during the New Collection Displays photocall at Tate Britain on October 15, 2020 in London, England. (Photo by John Phillips/Getty Images)]

What makes beloved pieces of art so great? James Payne is on a crusade to explain, minus the snobbery

4 min read

January 3, 2026

Deerskin moccasins, embroidered with porcupine quills and glass beads, identified as originating from the Haudenosaunee Confederacy in the mid-18th century. The moccasins are one of a vast collection of North American Indigenous artifacts at the Musée du Quai Branly in Paris.

Deerskin moccasins, embroidered with porcupine quills and glass beads, identified as originating from the Haudenosaunee Confederacy in the mid-18th century. The moccasins are one of a vast collection of North American Indigenous artifacts at the Musée du Quai Branly in Paris.

Paris museum faces calls to return North American Indigenous artifacts

6 min read

January 2, 2026

Wendy Red Star, Winter, 2006, one of four images, archival pigment print, 53.3 × 60.9 cm.

Wendy Red Star, Winter, 2006, one of four images, archival pigment print, 53.3 × 60.9 cm.

review

National Gallery’s new exhibit embraces the cold with art depicting winter’s impact across cultures

Kate Taylor

5 min read

December 27, 2025

ROM director and CEO Josh Basseches poses for a portrait in The Age of Dinosaurs exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, ON on December 15th 2025. Duane Cole/The Globe and Mail

ROM director and CEO Josh Basseches poses for a portrait in The Age of Dinosaurs exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, ON on December 15th 2025. Duane Cole/The Globe and Mail

As director Josh Basseches moves on, the ROM faces tough questions

Kate Taylor

6 min read

December 26, 2025

Art exhibitions to check out across the country in 2026

3 min read

December 26, 2025

The movies, TV shows, music and more to look forward to in 2026

2 min read

December 12, 2025

The Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 is seen in Halifax, on Friday, Jan. 28, 2011. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan

The Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 is seen in Halifax, on Friday, Jan. 28, 2011. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan

Canadian Museum of Immigration CEO steps down after being accused of bullying staff

3 min read

December 9, 2025

The 10 best things about visual art in 2025

Kate Taylor

5 min read

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