Museums & Galleries in Guelph

Established in 1940, Museum London stands today as the region’s preeminent venue for Canadian art and historical artifacts. Its permanent collections pay tribute to the city's long and active art history, ranging from the landscape and portraiture paintings of pioneers to the works of leading regional contemporary artists such as Kerry Ferris and Walter Redinger. The gallery's archives also hold more than 35,000 historical artifacts covering the city of London’s history and the advanced technology that allowed it to be airlifted directly from England.

THEMUSEUM’s vision—“To awe, inspire and enlighten”—is evident to its visitors as soon as they traverse the adult- and child-sized doorways. Once inside, they begin their journey through the exhibition halls in front of the vibrant plants protruding from the Living Wall, whose purpose is to clean the air and cool the interior of the multilevel facility. Along with permanent exhibitions, THEMUSEUM also hosts temporary exhibits; past installations have explored the pop art innovations of Andy Warhol's Factory, the interplay between art and electronics, and the experimental brushstrokes of painter Tom Thomson. In addition, THEMUSEUM is also a destination for global travelling exhibits, having played host to travelling international blockbusters like Our Body: The Universe Within and Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition.

As the centrepiece of a sprawling 32-acre site, the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum preserves Canada's rich baseball heritage while leading visitors around the base paths of the game's history. In one room, fans ogle displays dedicated solely to the Expos and Blue Jays, and in another, artifacts from across the globe trap eyes in a pickle between vintage photos and authentic uniforms. The consistently rotated lineup of displays also saves a spot for current Canadian ballplayers, as well as for autographed Babe Ruth mementos that, despite their age, still retain their new hotdog smell.

Each year, the Hall of Fame adds new members to a select group of inductees, which currently includes 93 individuals and ranges from pro ballplayers and amateurs to umpires and trainers. In 2012 alone, the museum and its surrounding ball fields will play host to more than 450 events, highlighted by training clinics and minor league games. The 10th annual Kids on Deck summer camp also calls the site home, giving youngsters aged 8–14 the chance to perfect such vital skills as bunting and spitting a sunflower seed at least 10 feet.

A child explores a cave's rock formations, stumbling upon drawings left by humans eons ago. Not far away, another child unearths something millions of years older—dinosaur fossils. For more than three decades, the London Children's Museum has stimulated imaginations through such interactive exhibits, helping children learn through play instead of fact memorization or encyclopedia ingestion. Stretched across three floors, nine permanent exhibits couple with travelling displays to explore everything from jellyfish to space exploration and 1880s schoolhouses. To extend this educational and recreational reach, the museum offers field trips, educational programs, and premium special events for preschoolers through 12-year-olds. They also offer memberships for frequent visitors, which come with benefits such as discounted pricing for the annual Halloween party and in the Explore Store.

Lou and Marianne Fenninger founded Art Source in 1978 in a 200-square-foot basement. When demand for the couple's poster prints exploded, they soon expanded their products and services. Within a few years they'd outgrown the basement, and moved into the 6,000-square-foot showroom they occupy today.

Nowadays, Art Source reaches every corner of the globe, distributing art for both retail and wholesale clients as far-flung as Europe, Japan, and New Zealand. The shop helps customers find perfect pieces for complementing their room decor and covering up unsightly fire extinguisher cases with 10,000 stock images of classic, modern, local, and international art, as well as an original art design service, all available for custom printing. Additionally, Art Source's staff help patrons preserve cherished pieces with custom framing services that can wrap works of any size in a carefully designed and assembled border.

The McMichael Canadian Art Collection was set in motion in 1952, when Robert and Signe McMichael purchased the property and, inspired by their surroundings, began collecting artworks of similar beauty. Today, the museum—which is built of fieldstone and hand-hewn logs—remains enveloped by 100 acres of conservation land, and houses a permanent collection of nearly 6,000 pieces devoted solely to Canadian artists. Its 13 galleries showcase ongoing exhibitions, including a tribute to the McMichael legacy. The facility's floor-to-ceiling windows look out upon the surrounding Humber River Valley, where dense woodlands and oaks sporting powdered wigs influenced many of the collection's works. In addition to its permanent displays, the McMichael frequently hosts internationally acclaimed touring exhibitions, as well as lectures, musical performances, and workshops for aspiring creators.