The Tom Thomson Art Gallery receives $301,960 through the Museum Assistance Programme, Access to Heritage Component administered through the Department of Canadian Heritage.

The funds received will go towards the production of Betwixt & Between: An Untold Tom Thomson Story which opens at the TOM in May 2017. This is a ground-breaking, exploratory project that has been five years in the making. Originally conceived of by artists

Germinio Pio Politi and Joel Richardson, and curated by Virginia Eichhorn (Director & Chief Curator of the TOM), the project revolves around the implications of discovering previously unknown artefacts – a map, a book and a photograph – that would shine light on

the times in Thomson's life when he would disappear on his own up north. The story fuses fabricated and factual elements, positing a premise that is "85% authentic."

The period covered within the project – 1877-1917 – is pivotal in the development of this country and provides an opportunity to not just tell a story about Tom Thomson, but to create a comprehensive multi-layered response to an investigation of the significant events

that were happening then and that continue to have implications today.

Using historic artworks and artefacts integrated with new technologies, the project questions and challenges traditional bastions of authority: museums, educational systems and governments. The educational component that will be developed as part of this project will

be integral in cultivating a culture that expects and welcomes change, diverse viewpoints and interpretations and understanding of contemporary and historic events. This is a transformative project that is based on the belief that art can indeed change our world and

our understanding of what has happened in the past and how it affects our lives now.

Betwixt & Between: An Untold Tom Thomson Story will tour to the Confederation Art Centre, Charlottetown, BC; Grimsby Public Art Gallery, Grimsby, ON; The Reach, Abbotsford, BC; and the Robert McLaughlin Art Gallery, Oshawa, ON.

The TOM gratefully acknowledges support for the Betwixt & Between project from the Department of Canadian Heritage, TD and the Ontario Arts Council.

source: media release, Tom Thomson Art Gallery