Canvas & CommonArt & museums
Canada
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Collections

A collection beyond the gallery wall

Digital records offer another way into Canadian art.

Canvas & Common / Background / Source checked: 20 October 2026
Quiet gallery interior with original abstract paintings.
Editorial illustration of an art gallery and abstract paintings.

Historical and contemporary

The McMichael Canadian Art Collection brings together Canadian and Indigenous art, including work by Tom Thomson, the Group of Seven, their contemporaries and later generations of artists. Its collection page describes a continuing program of acquisitions. A collection is therefore a body of works built over time, rather than the same thing as a single exhibition.

An archive with a purpose

The McMichael is custodian of the Kinngait Archive, held in trust for the West Baffin Eskimo Co-op. Digitised works can be explored through Iningat Ilagiit. This resource provides a route into works on paper from Kinngait, while the institution’s online collection database supports searches for particular artists and artworks across its wider holdings.

Research before a visit

Collection records, exhibition information and visitor notices answer different questions. The collection page also links to library and archive resources used for research. An online record can help identify an artist or object without implying that the work is currently displayed. For any proposed visit, consult the institution’s current visitor information separately; access arrangements and the availability of individual works can change.

Original source

McMichael Canadian Art Collection

Read the original source ↗

Source checked on 20 October 2026. Practical information may change. Illustrations accompany the theme and do not identify the place or objects described.

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