The Gardiner Museum

Tue, 24 Jun 2014 00:00:00 +0000

[caption id=“attachment_1951” align=“aligncenter” width=“584”] “And there are many ways to love clay.” (Kevin Browne, Executive Director & CEO)[/caption]

The Gardiner Museum is 30 years old this year. My very first visit was for Doors Open which took place in Toronto on May 24th and 25th. It was fascinating to visit as I had heard so much about the collection from friends. I wondered who the Gardiner’s were and this is what I found: “George Gardiner began collecting ceramics in 1976, initially to decorate his home. His interests were eclectic – Ancient Americas, 18th-century European, and Chinese – and his collections assumed significant dimensions. He was joined in this passion by his wife, Helen, a native of Kirkland Lake, Ont., who had studied at York University. In 1984 they co-founded the Gardiner Museum. The Gardiners’ hope, Helen later wrote, was that the Museum “would contribute in a meaningful way to the understanding and appreciation of ceramic art worldwide.”

Gardiner-Museum on Late Blooms

The Gardiner Museum