Canada Council Art Bank

I first visited the Art Museum of the Americas, the gallery of the Organization of American States (OAS), in Washington DC, during the launch of the Punctured Landscape exhibition. I was struck then, at how the visitors were so deeply engaged with the artworks and the topics they addressed. Democracy, human rights, sustainability, security, our official and non-official histories. These topics are weighty. But they are timely, relevant and front-and-centre in the media, online and at our dinner tables – in both our countries. It was deeply rewarding – as the director responsible for the Art Bank, and as a Canadian — to see how those works sparked such important conversations. That event also sparked a conversation which led to the donation of 150 artworks from the Art Bank collection, to the Art Museum of the Americas. Each donated work is a copy of a work that remains in the Art Bank collection.

Artworks donated to the Art Museum of the Americas installed at the Organization of the American States

This gift, from one neighbor to another, represents the first Canadian works in the AMA collection. We are delighted to donate works on paper by 99 artists from across the country, including notable artists such as Rita Letendre, Daphne Odjig, Claude Tousignant, Pierre Ayot, General Idea and Michael Morris. It will be shared with visitors to the AMA and potentially in other venues throughout the Americas through the museum’s active touring program.   About the Author: Tara Lapointe Tara Lapointe is the Director of Outreach and Business Development at the Canada Council for the Arts. In her role, she oversees the Art Bank, the Public Lending Right program, as well as the Canada Council’s suite of Prizes.