Volunteer Association

 

Mission

 

The Volunteer Association (TEST RIVA) of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts was founded in 1948. Throughout its long history, the Association’s contribution to the Museum’s collection and overall development has been truly remarkable.

The Volunteer Association has remained true to its objectives: to foster and promote interest in the Museum while raising funds to support its growth and development.

Each year, the Volunteer Association donates close to a million dollars to the Museum. This gift comes from the many fund-raising activities the Association organizes, such as the Museum Annual Ball, the Eyes Wide Open Masked Soirée, the cultural trips, the day tours and the luncheon lectures on art-related topics.

 

 

2009-2010 Volunteer Association of the MMFA Board of Directors

The 2009-2010 Board of Directors Photo MBAM, Christine Guest. 2009

From left to right:
Foreground: Suzanne Legge Orr, Marjorie D. Gawley
1st row: Micheline B. Crevier, Thérèse Deschênes, Alix d’Anglejan-Chatillon, Ami Bard
2nd row: Louise Druckman, Nancy Thomson, Alexandra MacDougall
3rd row: Susan Salvati, Yvonne Zacios, Linda Greenberg
4th row: Hélène M. Stevens, Claire Gohier
5th row: Louise Lutfy, Carolina Gallo Richer La Flèche
Absent: Angèle Martineau, Kristin Gable, Michèle Plourde

 

Volunteer Association Personnel

 

Office Manager
Johanne Lejeune
Special Events Co-ordinator
Sylvie Naud
Cultural Tours Co-ordinator
Riva Khanna
Accounting Supervisor
Nada Jelicic

 

 

 

 

The Volunteer Association Activities

 

The Museum Ball

Saturday, November 21, 2009
6.30 p.m.
Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion
$1,000 per person
Information: 514-842-7436

Graphic Design: Steve Louis, Studio Lézard. 2009

The annual Museum Ball will be held under the theme « The Velvet Ball » inspired by the splendours of the Empire era. We will receive as the guest of honour Mrs. Huguette Derouin-Weider, wife of greatly missed Ben Weider, the donor behind the exceptional gift that made possible the opening of entire galleries devoted to Napoleon at the Museum.
Linda Greenberg will preside over this prestigious soirée; with Stéphane Boisvert, President of the Enterprise Group at Bell Canada, and George Cope, President and Chief Executive Officer at BCE and Bell Canada, acting as honorary co-presidents. For the second year in a row, the talented designer Scott Yetman will be creating the concept and decor for this magical evening.
The Volunteer Association invites you to attend this illustrious benefit event, the profits of which will support the Museum, most notably in the acquisition of new works of art, the presentation of outstanding exhibitions, and the provision of educative and cultural programmes.

 

 

The Christmas Tree Exhibition

From December 4, 2009 to January 3, 2010
11 a.m. to 5 p.m all days except:
11 a.m. to 4 p.m.: December 24, December 31
1 p.m. to 9 p.m.: December 26, January 2
Closed: December 25, January 1
Lobby and Hall of Mirrors of the Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion
Free Admission
Information: 514-285-1641

The Christmas tree decorated by the Consulate of El Salvador Photo MBAM, Christine Guest 2008

For many years now, the Museum’s Volunteer Association invites various groups and associations from different cultural communities to decorate the traditional Christmas tree according to their customs. European long attributed magical, almost divine powers to trees that do not lose their foliage in winter. In Sweden and Lithuania, trees were traditionally decorated with ornaments woven out of straw. In Mexico, straw figurines and ornaments were adorned with red and green wool, while in North America, cranberries and popcorn were strung together to create festive garlands. Perhaps the trees on display will give you some ideas for your own Christmas decorations! More than 35 Christmas trees are exhibited to enchant children and set adults dreaming of Christmases past.

 

 

The Christmas Concerts

From November 29 to December 20, 2009
Sundays at 3 p.m.
Hall of Mirrors of the Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion
Free Admission
Information: 514-285-1641

McGill Children’s Youth Choirs Photo David Rogers 2008

The Christmas concerts organized by the Volunteer Association showcase local talents and help to get visitors into the holiday spirit. These choirs present classical repertoires for all visitors’ listening enjoyment.

November 29, 2009:
 Les Petits chanteurs du Mont-Royal conducted by Gilbert Patenaude
December 6, 2009:
 Concerto Della Donna conducted by Iwan Edwards
December 13, 2009:
 Sainte-Anne Singers conducted by Margo Keenan
December 20, 2009:
 Choeur Enharmonique de Montréal conducted by Gilbert Patenaude

 

 

The Eyes Wide Open Masked Soirée

Saturday, June 5, 2010
9.30 p.m. to 2.30 a.m.
Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion
$175 per person ($150 before April 1, 2010)
Information: 514-842-7436
www.lesyeuxgrandsouverts.com

Graphic Design: Axel Pérez de León 2004

Organized by the Volunteer Association of the MMFA, the Eyes Wide Open Masked Soirée has quickly become Montreal’s most captivating, most spectacular and most glamorous event of the year. In a thematic ambiance, pleasure, gourmandise and artistic presentations mingle with the contemporary rhythms of Montreal’s most fashionable DJs. This extraordinary soirée is a signature piece of Jean-François Bouchard, Senior Director at Cirque du Soleil while its design and creation are the work of the genius of François Martin, Food Services Director at Cirque du Soleil.

 

 

The Cultural Trips, Day Tours, and Luncheon Lectures

Information: INFO-TRAVEL: 514-842-8298
Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Click here for detailed descriptions of cultural trips or day tours and luncheon lectures

The meeting with José Bedia, renowned Cuban artist living in Miami, during the Cultural Escape to Florida Cultural Trip. Photo of a participant. 2008

The Volunteer Association Travel Committee offers the Friends of the Museum the opportunity to discover the artistic and cultural heritage here and abroad. Opening the doors to private homes, personal art collections and artists’ studios off limits to the general public; its cultural trips are exclusive to the MMFA and impossible to find through regular travel agencies. In turn, its day tours offer "ready-to-visit" excursions including transport, lunch, entrance fees, and guided tours at incomparable prices. Its “Art & Gastronomy” luncheon-lectures highlight the skills of the Museum specialists who provide art-related lectures that are followed by gourmet discoveries on the same theme.