The Age of Enlightenment: The Pierre Conlon Book Collection
December 14, 2016
McMaster Museum of Art, in collaboration with McMaster Libraries, proudly presents:
The Age of Enlightenment: The Pierre Conlon Book Collection
January 12 – May 6, 2017
Curator: Renu Barrett, Archivist, Mills Memorial Library
RECEPTION
Thursday, January 12, 6 – 8 pm
GUEST SPEAKER
Dr. William Hanley
Thursday, January 26, 6 – 8 pm
Dr. Hanley will speak about the exceptional career and influence of Pierre Conlon. Dr. Hanley is a professor in the Department of French at McMaster University. His research areas include Voltaire and novel in XVIIIth century. This free public event is presented as a complement to the exhibition.
GUIDED TOUR AND BOOKMAKING ACTIVITY
Telling our stories
February 11, 1 – 3 pm
Free Hamilton Winterfest event. Registration is required.
To register, contact Nicole Knibb: knibbn@mcmaster.ca or 905-525-9140 x.27576.
This exhibition focuses on selected books from donations acquired by McMaster University Library from Professor Pierre Conlon (1924-2014) between 2007 and 2011. The collection consists of nearly two hundred 18th century books and includes important and rare editions of works by philosophers such as Voltaire, Rousseau and Montesquieu. The books were collected by Conlon over a period of 40 years and used to compile his monumental bibliography of the entire French Enlightenment: Le Siècle des Lumières (32 volumes) preceded by Prélude au Siècle des Lumières (6 volumes). The bibliography includes works by French authors beginning in 1680 to the onset of the French Revolution. The exhibition is a tribute to Pierre Conlon’s extraordinary scholarship and his contribution to McMaster University.
Art was also thriving during the Enlightenment, and works from or inspired by the period, drawn from the outstanding collection of the McMaster Museum of Art, are a natural pairing. The exhibition includes works by:
Jean-Victor Bertin (French, 1767-1842)
Francois Boucher (French, 1703-1770)
Pierre Drevet (French, 1663 – 1738)
William Hogarth (English, 1697-1764)
Jiri Ladocha (Canadian b. Czechoslovakia, born 1942)
George Romney (English, 1734-1802)
Tony Scherman (Canadian, born 1951)
Jean-Joseph Taillasson (French, 1745-1809)
M(M)A Education Staff Teresa Gregorio Shortlisted in City of Hamilton’s Arts Champion Awards
June 23, 2026
Please join us in congratulating M(M)A’s Educator for Campus & Community Engagement, Teresa Gregorio, for being shortlisted in the Arts Champion Awards in City of Hamilton’s Arts Award 2026. The Arts Champion Awards may be conferred annually to living individuals who are outstanding supporters of the arts in Hamilton as volunteers, advocates, or board members. […]
New Acquisitions from Open Studio
June 19, 2026
McMaster Museum of Art M(M)A and Open Studio are pleased to announce that M(M)A has acquired three works by Carl Beam, Janet Cardiff, and Rita Letendre from Open Studio’s historic archive collection through its Print Sales program. These works now enter M(M)A’s Permanent Collection. About Open Studio: Open Studio was founded in 1970 and is […]
M(M)A Education Staff Nicole Knibb Receive President’s Awards for Outstanding Service in 2025
June 8, 2026
Please join us in congratulating M(M)A’s Senior Educator (Academic and Professional Engagement) and Adjunct Professor in the Department of Family Medicine, Nicole Knibb, for receiving the President’s Awards for Outstanding Service in 2025. Nicole Knibb has made a profound and lasting contribution to interdisciplinary education, community engagement, and inclusive pedagogy at McMaster University. Through her leadership at the McMaster […]
