OTTAWA.- The National Gallery of Canada Foundation outlined yesterday its plans for its future direction and activities, following the broader organizational realignment announced by the National Gallery of Canada (NGC) on March 25.

The Foundation expressed its strong support for the “institutional realignment” announced by Gallery Director and CEO Marc Mayer and approved by the Gallery’s Board of Trustees. “The steps taken by the National Gallery of Canada to achieve greater overall effectiveness in delivering its mandate as a leading national and global centre of excellence is totally consistent with the aims and objectives of the Foundation,” said Foundation Chair Thomas d’Aquino.

The Foundation has a proud and successful history of achievement since its Board of Directors met for the first time in 1999. “The generous support of donors from across Canada and from beyond our borders has allowed the Foundation to raise $27 million in support of the Gallery in little more than a decade,” said Mr. d’Aquino. Over $12 million of this amount has been dedicated for endowment purposes.

Going forward, the Foundation’s Board of Directors has adopted a mandate focused strongly on providing leadership with regard to Major Gifts, Legacy Giving and the recently launched Distinguished Patrons Initiative. This fresh mandate, supported by the Gallery’s Board of Trustees and the Gallery’s Director and CEO, will be carried out by the Foundation in the closest collaboration possible with the Gallery. With respect to the mandate, “a seamless and totally coordinated approach on the part of the two bodies will generate the best possible results as we reach out to a growing body of donors,” stated the Chair of the NGC’s Board of Trustees, Michael Audain.

The National Gallery and its Foundation are currently contacting their donors explaining the new arrangement. Under the new arrangement, the Gallery is assuming direct responsibility for Membership, Annual Giving, and Sponsorship activities that will be carried out by a new revenue-generating Department of Institutional Advancement.

The Foundation Board of Directors saluted the contributions of departing President and Chief Executive Officer, Marie Claire Morin. “Madame Morin’s dedication and hard work since the Foundation’s inception has been an important part of the Foundation’s success,” said Mr. d’Aquino, “and every member of the Foundation’s Board expresses its thanks and appreciation for her work over the years.”

In conjunction with the Gallery’s Board of Trustees and the Gallery’s Director and CEO, Marc Mayer, the Foundation Board is currently engaged in addressing the future leadership needs of the Foundation.

In speaking to the Foundation’s principal priorities, Mr. d’Aquino said that “in the months to come, the Foundation will pursue an ambitious schedule of activities across Canada and in 2011 will organize a major event at the National Gallery involving the Gallery’s Distinguished Patrons and leaders from the world of the arts, business and government.”