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National Gallery of Canada
At St. Patrick StAbout
Architect Moshe Safdie, famed for his Habitat apartment block and Musée des Beaux-Arts in Montréal, designed a rose-granite crystal palace that gleams from its promontory overlooking the Ottawa River. A dramatic long glass concourse leads to the Grand Hall, commanding glorious views of Parliament Hill. Natural light also fills the galleries, thanks to ingeniously designed shafts with reflective panels. The museum displays about 800 examples of Canadian art, just a sliver of the 10,000 or so works held in its permanent collection; one recommended way to take it all in is to go to the second floor and proceed down and counterclockwise. Among many highlights are Benjamin West's famous 1770 painting of General Wolfe's death at Québec; the fabulous Rideau Convent Chapel (1888), a rhapsody of wooden fan vaulting, cast-iron columns, and intricate carving created by architect/priest Georges Bouillon; the works of early Québécois artists such as Antoine Plamondon, Abbé Jean Guyon, and Frère Luc; Tom Thomson and the Group of Seven artists; and the Montréal Automatistes Paul-Emile Borduas and Jean-Paul Riopelle. The European masters are also represented, from Corot and Turner to Chagall and Picasso, and contemporary galleries feature pop art and minimalism, plus later abstract works, both Canadian and American. Pause for a contemplative moment on the balcony of the central atrium looking down on a garden of triangular flower beds and a grove of trees that repeat the lines of the pyramidal glass roof. Each year, three or four major traveling exhibits are displayed, showcasing works by the likes of da Vinci, Michelangelo, and van Gogh. Other facilities here include two restaurants, a gift shop/bookstore, and an auditorium.
