ART GALLERY OF ONTARIO MORE TYRANNICAL THAN PHAROAH: TUT,TUT, TUT

This week Collette and I decided to check out the travelling expedition of King Tut that is currently being held at the Art Gallery of Ontario here in Toronto. I never did get see the Tut exhibit the first time it came here, many years ago and this is a time limit exhibit. Cameras are not permitted at this exhibit so no home made images. Actually, a lot of things are not allowed at the AGO, including having fun and being allowed to breathe but I'll get to those shortly

I'll start with the exhibit first. Overall it was pretty good. I've been reading a lot, lately, about Egyptian history and anytime you can stand in the presence of objects thousands of years old, it is impressive. I was a bit disappointed that this exhibit did not include some to the truly "sexy" Tut items, like the gold funerary mask
As I said, I never got to see the first Tut exhibit which included some of the more spectacular items Carter pulled out of the tomb. Still, there were some items truly beautiful and inspiring in their workmanship and detail. Some of the gold, stonework and jewelry were so intricate and delicate it took your breath away. I enjoyed the everyday items as well, such as footwear and toilet seats (yes, I said toilet seat, shut up) These more prosaic pieces helped connect me with the actual people who lived those thousands of years ago, not just the Pharaohs.

The exhibit was organized as the tomb was found, in several rooms, with a selection of items from each chamber. And it featured a little introductory video narrated by Harrison Ford. Hey, it's Indiana Jones .. um, did someone check Mr Harrison's coat for that golden mask?

Besides Tut, the exhibit featured artifacts from the reigns of several other Pharaohs, whose tyrannical powers are exceeded only by the AGO itself ...

Collette is not fond of the Art Gallery of Ontario. She went on a school trip from teacher's college (is it just me or is the idea of teachers taking a school trip just a bit bizarre) and was not happy with the way she was treated by the gallery's staff. This trip did nothing to change her mind. The gallery has gone through an expansion and some of the new space is truly stunning.

Everywhere you turn, you are confronted with signs declaring "Do not touch the artwork" Anybody who knows Collette understands that not only is she quite literal, she is not one to flaunt the rules for the sake of flaunting. In the above gallery, we were looking at a large piece of carved tree when an almost equally large piece of publicly employed dead wood .. aka a security guard .. comes rumbling down the gallery to proclaim in a very loud voice "Don't touch the art" When Collette assured him that she did not, this Robocop wannabe sneered "Oh yes you did" then proceeded to smirk like the school bully

Seriously

Think about this. You run a business. I'm your customer. Yes, you have placed certain conditions on me, but I'm your customer. And you call me a liar. And smirk. Well, bye bye employee, bye bye business.

Only it's not so easy. This is not a private business, this is a public institution. Yeh, that's right, it's my institution, it's our institution and while in it, you're made to feel like some kind of criminal.

While in another gallery, featuring paintings by the Group of Seven, another guard literally followed me around, giving me the hard eyeball. What the fuck ... the smallest painting was about 4' by 3' and I was wearing a T shirt and jeans. What did he think? I was going to stash this canvas and wooden frame under my hat?

The whole time we were there we were placed in lines, held up behind ropes, glared at and monitored ... how the hell are you supposed to enjoy all this art if you are made to feel like an intruder? And how the fuck can you be intruding on something that is, after all, public.

We are members of the ROM, the Royal Ontario Museum, another public space filled with countless priceless, precious items. And yes, there are signs about touching the artifacts but there are also cheerful helpful people who answer your questions about the exhibits and who seem to actually want to enhance your experience. And although certain special exhibits like the Dead Sea Scrolls are off limits for cameras, you can make images almost anywhere else in the building.
Isn't this how a public space should operate? Don't we maintain these places, at some great expense, to benefit people, to provide them with an enjoyable experience and hopefully a little mind expansion? I don't want to feel like an intruder in a public space. I want to feel that it does, indeed belong to me.

I was a bit disappointed at the Tut exhibit but I was vastly disappointed at the AGO itself. I just read that the director of the Art Gallery of Ontario makes 100,000 dollars a year. To me, this is another case of a public institution and a public employee who has completely lost touch with the public.

I don't see us returning to the AGO any time soon. I can't imagine how I'll get Collette back there. In the mean time, I guess we'll renew our subscription to the ROM