The National Gallery of Canada is one of Canada’s most prominent art galleries. Its most recognizable symbol is Louise Bourgeois’s ‘Maman’, a 30-foot sculpture of a spider located just outside the gallery’s main entrance.
At the National Gallery of Canada, visitors will find an outstanding collection of modern and contemporary Canadian, Native, and Inuit art, as well as Asian and European art. The art comes in a variety of forms - paintings, photographs, sculptures, even architecture. For example, the Gallery has housed the entire interior of the Rideau Street Chapel as a work of art since 1988. In addition to its large permanent collection, the Gallery often has temporary exhibitions that last a few weeks or months each.
While the original National Gallery of Canada was first formed in 1798, it relocated a number of times around downtown Ottawa before finally moving to its current location on Sussex Drive in 1988. The Parliament Buildings can be seen from the current location.
The National Gallery of Canada, like many museums in the city, has free admission on Thursday evenings.
Photo: Explore150 Team photo.