Key Toronto tourism sites to close during G-20 summit

TORONTO - Prominent tourism-related sites in Toronto such as the The Art Gallery of Ontario and CN Tower will remain closed during the Groupf of Twenty (G-20) summit that is being held here on June 26 and 27.

Gallery officials said the decision has been taken because of expected road closures, traffic jams and other potential disruptions.

The galley lies just north of the restricted zone for the summit of world leaders.

Founded in 1900 by a group of private citizens as the Art Museum of Toronto, the Art Gallery of Ontario is one of the largest art museums in North America, with a physical facility of 583,000 square feet.

It holds over 79,000 works in its collection, which spans from 100 A.D. to the present.

Its Canadian collection vividly documents the development of the nation’s art heritage since pre-Confederation, including one of the largest and finest Inuit art collections in the world.

The collection includes pivotal works by Cornelius Krieghoff, Lucius O’Brien, James Wilson Morrice, Tom Thomson, the Group of Seven, David Milne, Emily Carr, Paul-Emile Borduas, Joyce Wieland, and Kenojuak Ashevak.

Masterpieces of European art include works by renowned artists such as Anthony van Dyck, Thomas Gainsborough, Auguste Rodin, Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Paul Cezanne, Vincent van Gogh, Pablo Picasso and Rene Magritte.

The AGO maintains a comprehensive collection of contemporary art spanning from 1960 to the present, reflecting global developments in artistic practice across all media, including painting, sculpture, works on paper, photography, projection art, and installation art.

The AGO also houses the world’s largest public collection of works by internationally renowned British sculptor Henry Moore.

A collection of more than 40,000 photographs represents the emergence of the medium in all its artistic, cultural and social diversity. Works by 19th-century British, French, American and Canadian photographers, and 20th-century modernists are part of the collection.

The Thomson Collection at the AGO includes a broad range of works, from European to Canadian art, ship models and decorative arts.

As one of Canada’s most distinguished art museums, the AGO organizes and hosts a wide spectrum of major exhibitions.

The Canada National Tower (CN Tower),another popular site with tourists, will also be closed due to security associated with the summit, its management has announced.

The CN Tower was built by Canadian National and is federally owned by the Crown Corporation - Canada Lands Company (CLC) Limited.

It is 1,815 feet and five inches in height and is the world’s tallest tower as per the Guinness World Records and the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.

It took 40 months to construct. Construction started February 6, 1973 and was completed on April 2, 1975. About 1,537 people were employed for the project that cost the national exchequer 63 million dollars.

It was officially opened to the public on October 1, 1976, and about two million people visit it annually.

It has 400 regular staff members and 550 in peak tourist season.

One of its key features is a 360 Restaurant with a capacity of 400 people that takes an hour and twelve minutes to revolve once.Thousands of visitors who flock to this popular city landmark located beside the Metro Toronto Convention Centre are likely to be disappointed.

The tower will reopen on June 28. By Ashok Dixit (ANI)