After amalgamation in 2001, artworks from the Region of Ottawa–Carleton and 11 municipalities were brought together as one art collection. Today, the City of Ottawa Art Collection is comprised of more than 3,100 artworks created by over 860 artists including Shahla Bahrami, Jennifer Dickson, Lorraine Gilbert, Adrian Göllner, Yousuf Karsh, Farouk Kaspaules, Meryl McMaster, Nadia Myre, Cynthia O’Brien, and Annie Pootoogook.
The City of Ottawa collects artworks that demonstrate creativity and innovation. New artworks are added to the collection by purchase, donation and commission based on a peer assessment committee’s recommendation. Public art commissions accompany major capital projects such as Ottawa on the Move and Confederation Line. By presenting art in public spaces, the City of Ottawa Art Collection enriches communities, supports local artists and forms a visual art history of the Ottawa area.
Artwork from this collection is presented at over 170 public sites across Ottawa! Library branches, community centres, parks, playgrounds, employment centres, transit stations and City Hall display artwork for residents. Search your Collection!
Check back regularly. New items will be added to the faceted search tool.
Images (left to right): locomOtion, Erratic Field, The Spirit of OC Transpo, Morphology
Image: Holding Pattern: 2021 Additions to the City of Ottawa Art Collection (installation view at City Hall Art Gallery), photo: David Barbour
This competition is now closed.
The City of Ottawa Public Art Program invites professional artists, and their representatives, to offer existing artworks for purchase. Applications are reviewed by a peer assessment committee and artworks recommended for purchase will become part of the City of Ottawa Art Collection. Artworks from this diverse collection are presented in over 170 public sites across Ottawa. Direct Purchase is a competitive program for participants to offer artwork for purchase to the City of Ottawa. More than 2,700 artworks are reviewed each year.
Before submitting your application, please review the Eligibility section below.
Applications are assessed by a Peer Assessment Committee according to:
Read through the Call to Artists completely before beginning your online application and make sure you have all the required information ready.
Items 1, 2, and 3 to be saved as one PDF
Upload ten digital image files or ten minutes total of time-based media content (or a combination of both) that support the proposal statement and follow the guidelines listed below.
Image files must be:
01_Artwork Title_year_medium_dimensions_$price.jpg
Examples:
When ten artworks are not for sale, include detail images, images with alternate points of view, or images of artwork from a similar series. Images of artworks not for sale should be named with a price of $0.
We are available to help you prepare your application in the following ways:
If your application is not successful you are encouraged to try again!
The peer assessment committee is comprised of new members for each competition. If your artwork was not recommended for purchase understand that your submission may have been supported but the program’s limited budget cannot fund all applicants, regardless of their merit.
Sarah Patterson
sarahm.patterson@ottawa.ca
613-244-4384
For general information about the City of Ottawa Public Art Program or technical issues contact publicartprogram@ottawa.ca.
Fall 2022 and Winter 2023
Bates and Birks buildings
Window spaces at Sparks and Metcalfe
101-111 Sparks Street, Ottawa
Artwork details (left to right):
Barry Ace, Shaman's Medicine Lodge, 2019, mixed media on paper, City of Ottawa Art Collection, 2020-0014, photo: David Barbour;
Shelby Lisk, Still Now Here We Are, 2018, hide, beads, string, courtesy of the artist;
Nadia Myre, Respite 03, 2017, digital print and Plexiglas, City of Ottawa Art Collection, 2020-0042
Beaded works are meticulously created using a variety of hand-stitching techniques, or with the use of tools such as looms. Every technique creates different patterns, ranging from geometric to floral. Different Indigenous groups have their distinct traditional patterns passed down through generations.
These artworks come together to showcase the beauty, intricacy, and diversity of Indigenous beadwork. Beading has many traditional purposes, such as ceremony, ornamentation, and communication; and these contemporary artworks were meticulously pieced together in order to address the pertinent issues of today.
This exhibition showcases enlarged artworks by Indigenous artists from the City of Ottawa Art Collection and an artist who recently exhibited at Karsh-Masson Gallery.
Biographies
Barry Ace is a debendaagzijig (citizen) of M’Chigeeng First Nation, Odawa Mnis (Manitoulin Island), Ontario, Canada. His work embraces the impact of the digital age and how it exponentially transforms and infuses Anishinaabeg culture with new technologies and new ways of communicating. His work bridges historical and contemporary knowledge, art, and power.
Shelby Lisk is a multidisciplinary artist, filmmaker, and photographer with roots in Kenhtè:ke (Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory) whose art practice is grounded in her connection to and place in the world as a Kanyen’kehá:ka woman.
Nadia Myre is a member of the Algonquin First Nation of Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg. She brings to light the social and political struggles of Indigenous peoples. The works in the series Meditation (Respite) incorporate beadwork that make thematic connections with cosmic elements.
Winter and Spring 2022
Bates and Birks buildings
Window spaces at Sparks and Metcalfe
101-111 Sparks Street, Ottawa
Anchored in contemporary reality, Moments of Respite shares histories and insights into Inuit identity from East to West. The work by Brian Adams and Annie Pootoogook captures the community's continuance and the richness of their cultural practices.
ᓄᖅᑲᖓᓐᓇᐅᑎᓪᓗᒍ ᑕᑯᒃᓴᐅᑎᑕᐅᕙᖕᓂᐊᖅᑐ (Inuktitut)
(left to right) Brian Adams, Marie Rexford, Kaktovik, Alaska (detail), 2015, medium format film, courtesy of the artist
Annie Pootoogook, A Friend Visits (detail), 2008, lithograph on paper, City of Ottawa Art Collection, 2018-0001, photo: David Barbour
(left to right) Brian Adams, Sylvester Swan Jr., Kivalina, Alaska (detail), 2007, medium format film, courtesy of the artist
Annie Pootoogook, Composition (Jigging for Fish) (detail), 2006, coloured pencil and ink on paper, Collection of the Ottawa Art Gallery: purchased with the support of OAG Acquisition Endowment Fund, 2018, photo: Justin Wonnacott
Brian Adams (detail), photo: Ash Adams, courtesy of the artist
Brian Adams is an editorial and commercial photographer based in Anchorage, Alaska, who specializes in environmental portraiture. His documentation of Inuit life in Alaska and the circumpolar captures the positive energy of these communities. His work has been featured both nationally and internationally. His first book of photography, I AM ALASKAN, was published in 2013 by University of Alaska Press. His most recent book, I AM INUIT, was published in 2017 by Benteli Publishers. He received a fellowship grant from the Native Arts and Cultures Foundation and the Rasmuson Foundation in 2018.
Annie Pootoogook (detail), photo: Katherine Knight, courtesy of Site Media Inc.
Annie Pootoogook (1969-2016) was born in Kinngait, formerly known as Cape Dorset, Nunavut and moved to Ottawa as an adult. Moving away from the traditional practices of sculpture and printmaking, she created unique renderings of modern Inuit life through drawing. She has exhibited both nationally and internationally and was awarded the Sobey Art Award in 2006. In 2018, Annie Pootoogook: Cutting Ice was published, and an exhibition was organized by the McMichael Canadian Art Collection to commemorate the life and work of this remarkable artist.
Inuktitut translations provided by UUTTUVAK CONSULTING INCORPORTATED.
Offers of donation to the City of Ottawa Art Collection are closed for 2022. Please contact our office in 2023 for updates on donating: publicartprogram@ottawa.ca. Donation proposals are reviewed by a peer assessment committee based on artistic merit, regional importance, innovation, conservation and maintenance requirements. Preference is given to artwork by professional artists who live or have lived within a 150 km radius of Ottawa. Tax receipts are available.
Gain experience working in the cultural sector as part of an academic course. Students enrolled in post-secondary institutions may be eligible to participate in a work placement (internship, practicum). Please note that work placements are unpaid. Send a copy of your resume and contact information for your course coordinator to publicartprogram@ottawa.ca.
The City of Ottawa Art Collection features over 3,000 artworks created by more than 800 artists and artist teams. Artists are listed alphabetically by last name.
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
Originally established by Ottawa residents O.J. and Isobel Firestone in the early 1950s, the Firestone Collection of Canadian Art is a significant collection of works that spans the modern period (1900-1980). This collection contains approximately 1,600 works by influential Canadian artists, including A.Y. Jackson, Emily Carr, Jack Shadbolt, Paul-Émile Borduas, and Ghitta Caiserman.
In 1972, the Firestones donated their collection to the Ontario Heritage Foundation to ensure that it would always remain accessible to the public. In 1992, the Foundation transferred ownership of this collection to the City of Ottawa, to be cared for, displayed and managed by the Ottawa Art Gallery.
