VARLEY MCKAY

ART FOUNDATION OF MARKHAM

 

TOWN OF MARKHAM
VARLEY ART GALLERY

Monday, January 19, 2009 – 4:00 P.M.

 

NOTES

 

Attendance:

 

Members Present:

Howard Back, Chair

Karen Chadwick

Mahesh Chokshi
Patty Loveland

Terrence Pochmurksi

Beverly Schaeffer

Councillor Joe Virgilio

 

Non-Members:

Bill Pickering

 

Staff:

John Ryerson, Director

Kitty Bavington, Committee Clerk

 

 

 

Absent:

Lana Champion

Drew Gerrard

Anna Hudson

Sammy Lee

Edward Mariani

Robert McCulloch

Stan Neal

Elizabeth Plashkes

Ernestine Tahedl

 

 

The informal meeting of the Varley-McKay Art Foundation of Markham Board convened without quorum at 4:15 PM with Howard Back presiding as Chair.

 

 

1.                  OPENING REMARKS

 

The Chair, Howard Back, brought the Committee up to date on the resignation of Katerina Atanassova, Program Coordinator. He noted that Katerina had enabled the Gallery to make significant progress and to achieve national recognition during her time here, and has now obtained a position as Chief Curator at the McMichael Gallery. Howard will ensure that they keep in touch, and he looks forward to the gallery working with Katerina on future projects.

 

Howard Back advised that the Chairs of two sub-committees have been reassigned, due to the resignations of some Board members. Anna Hudson has agreed to Chair the Art Acquisitions Committee, and Elizabeth Plashkes will Chair the Development Committee.

 

Mr. Back expressed appreciation to John Ryerson and Katerina Atanassova for organizing the excellent and insightful tour of the Thompson Collection in Toronto, which was attended by the Mayor, several Councillors and Commissioners, and Board members.

 

 

 

 

2.       BUSINESS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES

 

Howard Back provided updates on two items from arising from the minutes of December 8, 2009:

-          The Public Meeting regarding the expansion project was held on January 12. It will be discussed in more depth later in the meeting.

-        The appreciation dinner for Nancy Coxford will be held on February 4 and is being arranged by Patty Loveland.

 

 

3.       SUB-COMMITTEE REPORTS

 

a)       Development Committee

 

Bill Pickering advised that the presentation proposing additional funding for the expansion project was given to Council in December, and it was unanimously approved. Council also agreed to staff negotiating for a possible single source architect, being Jerry Markson, conditional on a satisfactory fee being arranged. The Purchasing Department has indicated that a satisfactory arrangement has been reached.

 

A Public Meeting was held last Monday night, which was well-attended. The project was strongly supported by most. Merchants on Main Street had been given an information package by Board member Edward Mariani, and Bill and staff have been speaking to community members and neighbours. A project manager will be engaged.

 

Discussions included the time frame, truck traffic, engineering issues to be resolved, and the impacts to the church foundation. It was suggested that the church congregation be invited to view the drawings, and it was emphasised that disruption and inconvenience should be kept to a minimum.

 

Howard Back conveyed appreciation to Bill Pickering for his efforts on this project.

 

b)       Auction Committee

 

Howard Back reported that Elizabeth Plashkes has been meeting with various galleries. The auction is being chaired by Patrick Carr, and it is shaping up to be a great event. The IBM design department is preparing the graphics for the brochures.

 

c)       Nominations Committee

 

The Board’s recommendation for Patrick Carr’s Board membership will be considered by Council on January 20. The members were requested to submit their suggestions for other Board members, to the Chair.         

 

d)       Development Committee

 

Elizabeth Plashkes has been working on the formation of a website for the Foundation and has requested a preliminary budget of $7,500 to be included in the 2009 Business Plan that is being developed. Due to the substantial overall cost, it will start with just a good basic site and then will be improved gradually over the next couple of years.

 

4.       FINANCIAL REPORT

 

No financial report was presented. The Board was advised that the 2009-2011 Business Plan was being developed pending receipt of a financial statement as of December 31, 2008 to provide a base starting point for the 2009 plan.

 

 

5.       DIRECTOR’S REPORT – John Ryerson, Director

 

John Ryerson, Director, reported on the 2009 operating budget and advised that Council is close to achieving a zero percent increase for 2009. While the Gallery has not requested increased funding over the past 6 years, other than salary adjustments, the efficiency and effectiveness exercise as well as inflation, have had an impact. The Mayor’s Dinner for the Arts is not proceeding and the financial impact of that event has been removed from the budget. The gallery remains well supported by the Town of Markham and like many cities around the world looks to culture as part of its sustainability agenda.

 

The biggest challenge is building a fundraising base of support through a strong volunteer and membership program.  Support is needed for the Legally Deafblind exhibition opening in March and sponsorships have been requested for The Automatiste Revolution this fall.

 

The Automatiste Revolution is a major project with many dimensions. Packages from the Director, Mayor, and Louis Grachos at Albright, have been sent to Consulates in Toronto, Buffalo and New York. An advocate for the project still has not been found at the Federal level. There are cross border business and tourism interests. The book will be printed in March and released in October, and the Markham Public Library has agreed to assist us with the book launch. Planning continues for programming with Automatiste artist and choreographer Francoise Sullivan O.C., and John will be meeting with the Chair of Dance and Dean of Fine Arts for York University shortly to see how they can be involved.

 

The Hospital Pilot project launched last week. In addition, there is work being done to create opportunities for local area artists to display work at the hospital. A manual will be written for other art galleries to bring art and wellness together.

 

Mr. Ash Prakash conducted a tour of the Thomson collection that was attended by five councillors, the Mayor and several Board members. The tour provided an insight into the collector and his collection that was an outstanding experience according to feedback from attendees. The Director was grateful for the hospitality that Mathew Teitlebaum had extended.

 

There has been difficulty in renting out the McKay Arts Centre, due in part to the lower traffic, and staff are looking for other options to promote the centre. It was noted that the lack of traffic and high turn-over on Main Street, even before the economic problems, are a concern for the businesses in the area.

 

John is working with Commissioner Librecz and the Human Resources Department on staffing and the implications of our Curator/program coordinator vacancy coming up in March. The Foundation will have input through the Chair, on Katerina’s replacement.

Upcoming Dates:

- A farewell reception for Katerina will be held on March 11th at 4pm at the Gallery.

- The Public Art Advisory Committee will again host an ice sculpture event at the gallery on Feb 14 to16.

 

 

6.       NEW BUSINESS

 

The Committee discussed more details of the dinner for Nancy Coxford on February 4, 2009.

 

The Committee acknowledged with appreciation, Councillor Joe Virgilio’s amendment to the resolution passed by Council regarding the additional funding.

 

 

7.         NEXT MEETING

 

The next meeting of the Varley McKay Art Foundation of Markham Board will be held on Monday February 23, 2009 at 4:00 pm at the Varley Art Gallery.

 

 

8.         ADJOURNMENT

 

The meeting of the Varley McKay Art Foundation of Markham adjourned at 5:00 pm.