Museums house large collections, yet only approximately 2.1% of them are on display to the public. The Great Unseen brings rarely viewed pieces from the McMaster Museum of Art’s collection to the forefront, transforming absence into opportunity.
The exhibition, curated from a personal Caribbean heritage and diasporic perspective, focuses on Black, Caribbean, and diasporic artists—communities that have historically been excluded from dominant art historical paradigms. It includes seldom seen artworks from the Museum’s vaults, recent acquisitions by Black artists, and new pieces by invited contemporary Black artists who are not yet part of the collection.
These works together challenge representational gaps and investigate how institutions influence our perceptions of identity, cultural value, and visibility. They reflect lived experience, material innovation, and powerful expressions of presence and resistance.
The Great Unseen represents an evolving curatorial approach and commitment at the McMaster Museum of Art that prioritizes equity, inclusivity, and cultural awareness. Visitors are invited to engage with the collection in new ways through recognition, rediscovery, and the transforming power of visibility.
Exhibition Preview: Thursday, May 15th, 5 – 8pm
Opening Reception: Thursday, September 18th, 5 – 8pm
Artists in the collection:
Karel Appel, Elvira Bach, Radcliffe Bailey, Peter Blake, June Clark, Henry Cliffe, Erika Defreitas, André Derain, Kareem-Anthony Ferreira, Eric Freifeld, Sergio Gonzalez-Tornero, Aaron Jones, Tadashi Kawamata, James Ritchie, Jack Shadbolt, Richard Tompson, Hilda Woolnough
From Storage to Spotlight: Lunchtime Panel
Date: Friday, September 19, 2025
Time: 12–2 p.m.
Location: TSH 118, Togo Salmon Hall, McMaster University
Did you know most of what museums hold in their vaults is never put on display in exhibition galleries to be viewed by the public? The Great Unseen, a new exhibition presented by the McMaster Museum of Art, changes that by bringing rarely shown works, new acquisitions, and contemporary Black and diasporic voices into view.
As part of the Africa and Black Diaspora Studies Seminar Series and in partnership with the McMaster Museum of Art, join curator Christina Leslie, artists Aaron Jones and Janice Reid and moderator Stacy Creech de Castro for a lunchtime panel on what it means to make the unseen visible. Together, they’ll share stories, ideas, and perspectives that expand how we think about art, identity, and creativity. Lunch is provided—feed your curiosity, and be part of the conversation.
Christina Leslie is a Toronto-based artist whose lens-based practice explores themes of decolonization, identity, migration, marginalization, and her West Indian heritage. Through experimental photography and text, she examines the intersections of history, memory, and race to craft thought-provoking visual narratives.
She holds a B.F.A. from OCAD University (2006) and an M.F.A. from the Savannah College of Art and Design (2022). Leslie has delivered notable talks at prominent venues, including the SPE Conference in Philadelphia (2010), the Position as Desired symposium at the Royal Ontario Museum (2011), the McMaster Museum of Art (2022, 2023,) and the Robert McLaughlin Gallery (2021, 2025). Most recently, she was a featured speaker at the Caribbean Art Meet-Up at the National Gallery West in Jamaica (2025).
Her recent series, Sugar Coat, received critical acclaim from online platforms such as Ain’t Bad Magazine, Feature Shoot, and PetaPixel. The series was exhibited at BAND Gallery with support from the Honda Canada Foundation (2023), RIT City Art Space in Rochester, NY (2023), and the Exposure Festival in Calgary (2024). Leslie’s photographs have been featured in exhibitions at major institutions worldwide, including GAMU in Prague, Oakland University in Michigan, the Royal Ontario Museum, Canada’s Pier 21, the Art Gallery of Windsor, the Caribbean Art Fair in Jamaica, the McMaster Museum of Art, Paris Photo, Smokestack Gallery, and the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in Toronto.
She served as interim assistant and guest curator for the McMaster Museum of Art’s exhibitions SUMMA: Yearbook (2024) and SUMMA: Affirmations (2025).
She currently serves as a mentor for VIBE Arts’ emerging artists mentorship program.
Leslie’s recent solo exhibition, Likkle Acts, supported by Partners in Art, received rave reviews and was on view at the Robert McLaughlin Gallery in Oshawa through April 2025. She has two upcoming solo exhibitions: one at the Stephen Bulger Gallery in May 2025 as part of the CONTACT Photography Festival, and another at the Ottawa School of Art in July 2025.
Her artwork is part of Dr. Kenneth Montague’s Wedge Collection and is included in the permanent collections of the Art Gallery of Ontario and TD Bank.
Christina Leslie is represented by the Stephen Bulger Gallery in Toronto.
Image credit:
Aaron Jones (Canadian, b. 1993) This Place, 2023, paper collage
Museum of Art Collection Trust, 2024, McMaster Museum of Art
Image courtesy of Zalucky Contemporary
Link to Publications Archive for a complete list of publications
FEATURED PUBLICATIONS
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The Clichettes: Lips, Wigs, and Politics
Published on the occasion of the exhibition The Clichettes: Lips, Wigs, and Politics held at the McMaster Museum of Art (M(M)A) in Hamilton, Ontario in 2024. With essays by Ivana Dizdar, Marni Jackson, John Greyson, Alexandra Schwartz, Mark Kingwell, rl Goldberg, Lillian Allen, and Wanda Nanibush. Bridging theatre, lip-sync, dance, drag, costume, and comedy, the […]
Barbara Astman, Carl Beam, Meryl McMaster, Sorel Cohen, Joseph Beuys, Bidemi Oloyede, Christina Leslie, Jeff Thomas, Micah Lexier, László Moholy-Nagy This exhibition brings together artworks drawn from the M(M)A permanent collection that present diverse ways of exploring self-imaging and subjectivity through different types of photo-based media. Expanding the genres of portraiture and self-portraiture, selected works […]
Coins in the McMaster Museum of Art: The Greek and Roman Collections
Ancient Greek and Roman coinage represents the intersection of politics, economics, and art; no other medium in the ancient world more closely reflects the decisions of administrations, the expectations of civic bodies, and detailed craftspersonship. Coins are among the most ubiquitous artifacts from Classical antiquity and despite their small size, are among the most instructive […]
This catalogue documents a multi-year art-science project called Immune Nations, produced on the occasion of its exhibition at the McMaster Museum of Art in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Initiated in 2014 and co-led by Steven Hoffman (York University), Sean Caulfield (University of Alberta), and Natalie Loveless (University of Alberta), Immune Nations brought together scientists, policy experts, […]
Peripheral Vision(s) includes scholarly essays by some of the most prominent Indigenous and non-Indigenous voices within the fields of Indigenous art history and art criticism today.
The McMaster Museum of Art is presently not accepting artists’ submissions for exhibitions at this time of leadership change at the museum. Our Interim Director will be undertaking a review of the museum’s forward exhibition schedule, as well as our policies and procedures, in the coming months. Our present focus is the ongoing maintenance of our permanent collection and storage needs for future collection activities.
The museum remains committed to our collecting priority in the continued support of early career, mid-career and established Indigenous artists, artists of the Black diaspora and racialized artists through purchases and commissions. Donations will be welcomed and reviewed at a future date which will be posted on our website.
ASSISTANCE:
The McMaster Museum of Art is a third party recommender for Ontario Arts Council (OAC) Exhibition Assistance Grants.
The museum is currently accepting applications. Our next program deadline is: December 16, 2024.
Priorities:
Artists who demonstrate an interest and consideration of art as a medium for social change and action.
Please follow the guidelines established by the Ontario Arts Council, apply directly through their website, and submit the following with your applications:
Brief artist statement
Confirmation letter from the gallery/museum/venue
Budget
CV
Digital images of work