Paul Graham is a British photographer based in New York. Lauded as “a profound force for renewal of the deep photographic tradition of engagement with the world”, he was awarded the 2012 Hasselblad award for major achievements in photography.

In conjunction with the exhibition Light My Fire: Some Propositions about Portraits and Photography

Generously supported by Penny Rubinoff

Charlie Keil, Director of the Cinema Studies Institute at the University of Toronto, will provide insight into the connections between Edward Steichen's photography and the Hollywood star system during the first decades of the studio era.  Steichen's photos are a key instrument in a developing culture of celebrity that marks the early twentieth century.

Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792) was Britain's leading portrait artist and the founding President of the Royal Academy of Arts, London. He amassed an enormous art collection which included thousands of prints and drawings. These are now scattered all over the world from Cape Town to Moscow, Los Angeles to Melbourne. This talk uncovers highlights of this collection, including Reynolds' precious drawings by Michelangelo, one of which is in the collection of the Art Gallery of Ontario and will be on view.

An Art Gallery of Ontario and Royal Ontario Museum co-presentation!

For over two decades, Chester Brown has been one of Canada's leading cartoonists, known nationally and internationally for such works as Yummy Fur, Ed the Happy Clown, I Never Liked You, and Paying for It. 2013 marks the 10th anniversary of the publication of his innovative and highly influential Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography, published to widespread critical acclaim. For this year's McCready Lecture, Chester Brown will present an illustrated talk.

Dr. Mary-Ann Pouls Wegner, Associate Professor of Egyptian Archaeology at the University of Toronto

Tutankhamun lived in "interesting times." He grew up in the royal court at Amarna, and was ultimately buried in western Thebes. Archaeological evidence from these sites provides crucial insights into the dynamic religious and political changes that took place during Tutankhamun's rule.

On the occasion of the AGO exhibition of their collaborative film Modest Livelihood (2012) Brian
Jungen and Duane Linklater discuss the film and their recent work. Modest Livelihood is concerned with the use and self-determination of native land. Both its creators are indigenous artists: Jungen, internationally recognized for his sculptures, is DaneZaa, while Linklater, who has been working with moving image and performance to portray Native oral histories and learning methods, is Omaskêko Cree.

Join artist-in-residence Jim Munroe in conversation with artists Mark Connery, a Toronto-based comic and zine artist, and Jonathan Mak, a Toronto-based game developer, about their work, indie culture and how playfulness factors into their practices.

Arnold Newman (1918-2006) was called the father of ‘environmental portraiture’ because he preferred to capture his subjects in their own familiar surroundings. He said of the multitude of images he took of artists, politicians and business people, "I don’t pose people. I let them fall into position". He photographed everyone who was anyone – and often more than once.

Artist in Residence Sara Angelucci; writer and historian Matthew Brower, Mark Peck, Royal Ontario Museum Ornithology Technician; and Bridget Stutchbury, author and Professor of Ornithology at York University, gathered to discuss the extinction and endangerment of North American birds as well as art and society’s relationship with the natural environment. Moderated by AGO curator of Canadian Art Andrew Hunter.