About the Collection
THE DONOVAN COLLECTION of contemporary art at the University of St. Michael’s College includes over 400 works by 200+ artists. The works are in a wide range of media and styles and represent a cross-section of art exhibited in Toronto from the early 1980s to the present time. The collection is not in a separate gallery but is instead throughout the college, in office and classroom buildings, in the library and in student residences. It is a collection with which students, faculty, and staff are able to live and interact.
A full catalogue of artworks that together form The Donovan Collection is available below.
THE DONOVAN COLLECTION is the result of the generosity and commitment of a single individual, Fr. Dan Donovan, a long-time professor at USMC.
Fr. Donovan, a priest of the Archdiocese of Toronto and a graduate of St. Michael’s College, completed degrees in theology and Scripture at Laval University in Quebec City and the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome as well as a doctorate in theology at the University of Münster in Germany. He began teaching theology at USMC in 1971.
Exposure to some of the great art of Europe during his post-graduate studies sparked his initial interest in the visual arts. The first two works in the collection, woodcuts by the German Jewish artist Jacob Steinhardt, were purchased in Münster in 1967 and were thought of by Donovan at the time as souvenirs of his years in Europe.
In the fall of 1980 he donated to the College a large stainless steel sculpture by Kosso Eloul, entitled Zen West. Its installation in the small park at the corner of Bay and St Joseph Streets marked the beginning of Donovan’s serious commitment to Canadian art.
The focus of the collection was initially on work with a religious or more broadly spiritual content. The opening of the renovated Odette Hall in 1996 led to the donation of the collection as it then existed to St. Michael’s and to its installation on the two bottom floors of that building.
The collection expanded considerably during the early years of the present century with works now installed throughout the USMC campus.
An endowment has been established to generate funds to support the ongoing care and maintenance of The Donovan Collection. To contribute, contact the Advancement Office at (416) 926-7281.
Image: Amy Switzer, Word Bird: Loulou (2011).
The Donovan Collection Committee
THE DONOVAN COLLECTION COMMITTEE was established by Father Daniel Donovan in 2023 to ensure the continued care, development, and accessibility of the Donovan Collection at St. Michael’s College. Charged with stewarding the collection’s future, the committee aims to keep the artworks meaningfully engaged with the campus community—especially students—and to sustain the living dialogue between art, place, and education that the collection represents.
The committee is composed of three members: one representing the University of St. Michael’s College, one from the Toronto arts community, and the Executive Director and Chief Curator of the Art Museum at the University of Toronto. James Roussain, Chief Librarian and Director of Special Collections at USMC, serves as Chair and college representative. Shelli Cassidy-McIntosh, Director and Partner at the Olga Korper Gallery in Toronto, represents the local arts community. Rounding out the committee is Barbara Fischer, the current Executive Director and Chief Curator of the Art Museum at the University of Toronto. Together, the committee is committed to sustaining the Donovan Collection as a vital and inspiring resource for the campus community.
