AGO Appoints Elizabeth Smith

As New Executive Director of Curatorial Affairs

(Toronto: June 22, 2010) – After a five-month global search, the Art Gallery of
Ontario (AGO) has hired Elizabeth Smith as its new Executive Director of
Curatorial Affairs.

Formerly the Chief Curator and Deputy Director of Programs at the Museum of
Contemporary Art (MCA), Chicago, Smith will oversee the Gallery’s ambitious
exhibition program and collection growth, while providing senior leadership in the
development of presentation strategies and production of scholarly research. She
also will establish international partnerships to galvanize the AGO’s profile and
produce varied art and business opportunities. Smith joins the AGO in this new
capacity on September 14, 2010.

“Elizabeth is a seasoned and accomplished leader in the museum world with 25

years experience,” explained Director and CEO Matthew Teitelbaum. “She joins
the Gallery at a pivotal time in our history. Now that we have successfully
launched the transformed AGO, she will lead our curatorial team to shape future
programming, leverage the AGO brand and collection internationally and amplify
audience engagement.”

Smith is an art historian, museum professional, author, and educator specializing

in visual art and architecture from the mid-20th century to the present. Educated in
Art History at Columbia University, she has taught at the University of Southern
California and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Prior to her 10 years at
MCA, Smith held various curatorial positions at the Museum of Contemporary Art,
Los Angeles (MOCA), for 16 years.

“We are pleased to have Elizabeth join the team,” said Jay Smith, member of the
Board of Trustees and chair of the AGO’s contemporary curatorial committee. “The
breadth of her experience and leadership in institutional programming will position
the Gallery to shine on the world stage, while ensuring our strategic goals.”

During her tenure at MCA, Smith curated many acclaimed exhibitions, such as
Jenny Holzer: PROTECT PROTECT (2008-09); Lee Bontecou: A Retrospective,
(2004); Kerry James Marshall, One True Thing: Meditations on Black Aesthetics,
(2003-04); and several major reinstallations of the MCA’s collection, including Life
Death Love Hate Pleasure Pain (2002).

While at MOCA, her exhibitions included At the End of the Century: One Hundred
Years of Architecture (1998); Cindy Sherman: Retrospective (1997-98); Urban
Revisions: Current Projects for the Public Realm (1994); and Blueprints for Modern
Living: History and Legacy of the Case Study Houses (1989-90).
“Having spent much of my career in museums of contemporary art, I am extremely
excited to join an institution with the curatorial range and breadth of the AGO,” said
Smith. “I look forward to working closely with the talented staff to develop
compelling exhibitions and to further the growth of the collection in a setting as
dynamic and impressive as the redesigned AGO.”

In addition to contributing essays to numerous exhibition catalogues, Smith has

authored Case Study Houses: The Complete CSH Program, 1945-66 (Taschen
Verlag, 2002) and Techno Architecture (Thames & Hudson, 2000).

She has served on panels, juries and advisory boards, including USA Artists
Awards, the National Endowments for the Arts and the Humanities, the
Presidential Design Awards, Independent Curators International, New York, and
the College of Architecture at Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), Chicago. Smith
is currently a trustee of the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine
Arts.

Selected honours and awards include 2005/06 Curatorial Research Fellowship,

The Getty Foundation; 2004 Person of the Year in the Arts, the Chicago Tribune;
and two awards from the American section, International Association of Art Critics:
2001 Best Architecture or Design Exhibition of the Year for The Architecture of
R.M. Schindler and 2004 Best Monographic Exhibition Nationally for Lee
Bontecou: A Retrospective.

ABOUT THE AGO

With a permanent collection of more than 79,000 works of art, the Art Gallery of
Ontario is among the most distinguished art museums in North America. In 2008,
with a stunning new design by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry, the AGO
opened its doors to the public amid international acclaim. Highlights include
Galleria Italia, a gleaming showcase made of wood and glass running the length of
an entire city block along the Gallery’s façade; and the feature staircase, spiralling
up through the roof of Walker Court and into the new contemporary galleries
above. From the extensive Group of Seven collection to the dramatic new African
art gallery; from David Altmejd's monumental installation The Index to Peter Paul
Rubens' masterpiece The Massacre of The Innocents, a highlight of the celebrated
Thomson Collection, there is truly something for everyone at the AGO.

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For more images and more information contact:

Antonietta Mirabelli, 416-979-6660 ext. 454, antonietta_mirabelli@ago.net