TORONTO, ONTARIO.- The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) announced today a lead gift of $30 million from donor Michael Lee-Chin for the Renaissance ROM Campaign. The announcement was made in a media conference attended by 150 guests this morning at the ROM, with the participation of prominent members of the culture, business and government communities, including the Hon. Hilary M. Weston (Campaign Chair), the Honorable David Tsubouchi (Ontario’s Minister of Culture) and the Honorable David Collenette (Canada’s Minister of Transportation). In response to this extraordinary contribution, the ROM will name its Crystal building addition the Michael A. Lee-Chin Crystal, and the interior atrium court the Hyacinth Gloria Chen Crystal Court in honour of Mr. Lee-Chin’s mother. The date of May 28, 2003 was also announced for the Launch of the public phase of the $200 million Renaissance ROM Campaign.
Michael Lee-Chin, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of AIC Limited, stated, "I’m thrilled to make this contribution to support a project that will change the face of Toronto and create an invaluable cultural and educational legacy for Ontario and Canada. I have been struck by how increasingly relevant and important the Museum’s core mission-building bridges of understanding and appreciation of the worlds’ cultural and natural diversity-is to youth and adults of our country. To assist and be involved with this institution at such a pivotal moment in its history is a tremendous privilege."
In announcing the lead gift, the Hon. Hilary M. Weston, Chair of the Renaissance ROM Campaign, said, "We are moved and delighted by this remarkable act of generosity. The ROM thanks Mr. Lee-Chin for this leadership gift-the most significant donation received for the Renaissance ROM Campaign. His gift reflects the tremendous breadth and depth of public support for Renaissance ROM and signals the beginning of a successful fundraising Campaign that will be critical to realizing the full potential of this wonderful project."
"To commemorate this historic milestone in the progress of the Renaissance ROM project, Daniel Libeskind’s new Crystal building will be named the Michael A. Lee-Chin Crystal," said James Temerty, Chairman of the ROM Foundation, the fundraising arm of the ROM. "This is one of the most important architectural commissions of our time, and we are delighted to be associated with one of Canada’s most respected business and community leaders, in presenting this new cultural landmark to the world. We are also thrilled to recognize the important role that family relationships have played for Mr. Lee-Chin, in shaping his values and success, through the naming of the interior four story atrium court, the Hyacinth Gloria Chen Crystal Court, in honor of his mother."
"Renaissance ROM is critical to our educational mission and will allow us to bring many rare and significant collections out of storage and present them to the public in the Michael A. Lee-Chin Crystal’s beautiful new galleries," added William Thorsell, Director and CEO of the ROM. "Mr. Lee-Chin’s extraordinary gesture provides important momentum as we move closer to our groundbreaking next month."
One of Canada’s most successful and highly regarded financial leaders and entrepreneurs, Michael Lee-Chin was born in Jamaica in 1951 and came to Canada in 1970. After graduating from McMaster University with a degree in civil engineering, he entered the financial services industry in 1977 as a financial advisor. Mr. Lee-Chin acquired AIC Limited in 1986 and has taken the organization from $1 million to $11.7 billion in assets under management. With his distinct approach to wealth creation, Mr. Lee-Chin established AIC’s successful Buy, Hold and Prosper investment philosophy, with the result that AIC has grown to become Canada’s largest privately-held mutual fund and financial services company, with operations in Jamaica, the US, and the UK. In 2002, AIC Ltd. was Presenting Sponsor of the successful ROM exhibition, Treasures from a Lost Civilization: Ancient Chinese Art from Sichuan.
Today’s announcement brings confirmed commitments to Renaissance ROM to $114 million. Other lead gifts to the Renaissance ROM Campaign will be announced at a Campaign Launch and Groundbreaking Ceremony on May 28th, 2003. In March 2002, the Ontario Government, through the SuperBuild Sports, Culture and Tourism Partnerships initiative, announced funding of $30 million for Phase One of the project. A matching $30 million commitment was made by the Government of Canada in May 2002, through the Canada-Ontario Infrastructure Program. The $200 million (CDN) Renaissance ROM project will be built in two phases: Phase One construction will begin May 2003, comprising the Michael A. Lee-Chin Crystal and initial heritage restorations in the existing buildings, to open in December 2005; Phase Two will complete the historical renovations by December 2006.
The Michael A. Lee-Chin Crystal will be built in Phase One of the Renaissance ROM project (replacing the existing Terrace Gallery building) and will open to the public in December 2005, along with the first renovations to the ROM’s heritage buildings. It will house a large new entrance lobby on Bloor Street West with the ROM Arts and Book Shop, a major international exhibition hall (level 2B), a new fine dining restaurant with panoramic city views (levels 4 & 5), and six spectacular new galleries overlooking Bloor Street. The new Michael A. Lee-Chin Crystal galleries will feature dinosaurs and early mammals (level 2); Africa, the Americas & the Pacific and West & South Asian Civilizations (level 3); Textiles & Costumes and the Institute of Contemporary Culture (level 4).
Three distinctive vertical features of the Michael A. Lee-Chin Crystal will create singular experiences for visitors. The Hyacinth Gloria Chen Crystal Court, a spectacular four-story atrium, will be the portal through which all ROM visitors will flow. The Spirit House, a striking asymmetrical void that rises through the building with bridges that join the galleries above, will evocatively address the function of museums in society, memory and the value of collections. The Stair of Wonders, a mini-museum in itself, will showcase remarkable collections and unusual objects that will create a sense of awe, linking the Museum’s current expansion to its historical roots in 18th and 19th-century museums as cabinets of curiosities.
Phase One will also include the renovation of level 1 of the heritage buildings, with redesigned and relocated Chinese and Korean galleries (including a reinstallation of the Ming Tomb), a new Japan Gallery, a spacious new gallery of Canadian First Peoples, and a new Learning Center (consisting of the reconfigured library, new classrooms, a new Digital Gallery and an interim Discovery Room that will replace the current Discovery Gallery). A new rooftop dining experience overlooking Philosopher’s Walk, and a family restaurant with views onto Philosophers Walk (from level 1B) will also open at that time.
The Royal Ontario Museum will remain open during all construction phases, presenting several major exhibitions from the world’s leading museums throughout this period:
Art Deco 1910 - 1939,September 20, 2003 to January 4, 2004
Peter Rabbit’s Garden, October 11, 2003 to January 4, 2004
Eternal Egypt: Masterworks of Ancient Art from The British Museum, February 28, 2004 to June 6, 2004
Pearls: A Natural History, September 18, 2004 to January 9, 2005
Feathered Dinosaurs and the Origin of Flight, March 5 to August 28, 2005
Daniel Libeskind, the Lead Architect for Renaissance ROM, will present a public lecture as part of the ROM’s Architecture Rampant series on Thursday April 24 at 6:30 p.m. (this is a revised date). F