The Tom Thomson Art Gallery is excited to announce that new interactive visits, tours, and programs are available on the Gallery's Digital Portal as part of their digital pivot during the recent lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Digital Portal is the online home of the Gallery's digital programming. On the Digital Portal you can access TOM from Home, a comprehensive array of fun and innovative arts education activities professionally developed for various ages, virtual tours of exhibitions, artist talks, curator talks, and much more.

The new expansions to the Digital Portal include TOM's Game Room featuring puzzles, printable colouring and activity sheets, and some surprises. There are also immersive new virtual visit experiences available including an all-new virtual tour of the Tom Thomson Room featuring an introduction from Curator of Collections David Huff. The recent exhibition of David Bierk's works from the collection is also available for exploration along with JP Moral's community project #myessential.

The Gallery is also thrilled to announce a new initiative called Ask Me Anything which will launch on Friday, April 30 at 11:00 a.m.. This is a live stream series that provides everyone a chance to join Gallery Staff online and learn more about the Tom Thomson Art Gallery, our collection, staff, programming, future plans, or simply the opportunity to just connect with us. Ask us anything!

"I choose to think of challenges as opportunities for growth," says Aidan Ware, Director and Chief Curator. "The talented and passionate staff have done a remarkable job of expanding the Gallery's digital landscape, creating innovative opportunities for continued interaction and connection with our art, artists, and with us. The Digital Portal is our online home and we invite you to visit. Come talk with us, explore, and create.

The Digital Portal can be accessed at http://www.tomthomsonartgallery.wixsite.com/digitalportal

source: media release, Tom Thomson Art Gallery