The National Gallery of Canada (NGC) in Ottawa recently received a donation of 24 contemporary artworks. The gift comes from Bob Rennie, a leading Canadian art collector, and his family.
This donation includes 17 works by Christopher Williams, two by Kerry James Marshall, four by Brian Jungen, and one by Jin-me Yoon. Since 2012, the Rennie family has given the museum a total of 284 works.
Bob Rennie, who has been on the ARTnews Top 200 Collectors list since 2015, said that any work leaving his collection must go to a better home.
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Jean-François Bélisle, NGC director and CEO, called the donation "a landmark and deeply inspiring gift." He noted that Bob Rennie's clear vision has helped build one of Canada's most important contemporary art collections. Bélisle added that the donated works are powerful and define our current time.
The works by Christopher Williams are the first of his pieces to join the NGC's collection. They include photographs and large installations. Jin-me Yoon's work, Souvenirs of the Self (1991–2001), features six postcard-style photographs. In these, Yoon poses at famous tourist spots in Banff, Alberta.
Brian Jungen's contributions include a piece from his "Prototypes" series (2001). In this series, he reshapes Nike Air Jordan sneakers to look like masks from Indigenous cultures of Canada's Northwest Coast. Another work is Michael (2003), an artwork made from Air Jordan shoe boxes.
One of Kerry James Marshall's works is the installation Wake (2003–25). It shows a black-painted sailboat decorated with medallions. These medallions represent descendants of the first Africans brought to Jamestown in 1619, including a self-portrait of Marshall.
Rennie emphasized the importance of Marshall's works. He stated that they document a crucial historical period and a narrative that must be remembered. He believes these voices need to be preserved for future generations. They show how the roots of slavery were planted, leading to the racism that continues today.
