Nathalie Bondil, Director General and Chief Curator of the MMFA has been decorated Knight of the Ordre de Montreal 2018

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA) proudly announced that its Director General and Chief Curator, Nathalie Bondil, was named Knight of the Ordre de Montréal at a ceremony held on May 17th at City Hall, in the presence of Mayor Valérie Plante and the members of the Council of the Ordre. As the highest honorary bestowed by the city, this recognition underscores Nathalie Bondil’s outstanding contribution to promoting and developing Montreal, her adoptive city.

This medal also pays tribute to Nathalie Bondil’s creative leadership and deep civic commitment, as she has been instrumental in seeing the MMFA carve itself an enviable position in the lives of Montrealers and become a leading cultural destination for the city, Canada and the world at large.

A cultural institution that is raising Montreal’s profile

Bondil

Nathalie Bondil, Director General and Chief Curator, MMFA.
Photo: Ville de Montréal

Since Ms. Bondil was appointed Director in 2007, the MMFA has seen exceptional growth, on the order of 200% in 10 years. Last year, it welcomed over 1.3 million visitors, and it is the eighth-most visited museum in North America. Its membership stands at 120,000 – a record among Canadian museums – and has grown by over 230% in six years. Annually, the Museum draws more than 100,000 tourists, which translates to about $100 million in spin-offs for the city and province.

Over the last decade, the Museum has enriched its encyclopedic collection by one quarter, currently comprising 43,000 artworks. The Museum complex has nearly doubled in size with the addition, in 2011, of the Claire and Marc Bourgie Pavilion for Quebec and Canadian Art and the Bourgie Concert Hall and, in 2016, of the Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion for Peace, showcasing some 800 works of international art, including the largest collection of Old Masters in Canada.

A visionary leader, Nathalie Bondil has already announced a new project for the MMFA in 2019: the Stéphan Crétier and Stéphany Maillery Wing for World Cultures and Togetherness. This brand-new space for Montreal will celebrate diversity and foster intercultural dialogue through art.

As an engaged museologist, Ms. Bondil has created dozens of highly successful exhibitions and introduced music, film and fashion to the Museum. Since her arrival, the MMFA has exported her exhibitions, renowned for their original design, in over 35 cities worldwide. Notably among them, The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk was seen by 2 million visitors on four continents, thus raising the profile of our homegrown talent and expertise.

A humanist museum in the heart of Montreal
Convinced that art is a vector for social progress, Nathalie Bondil launched the Michel de la Chenelière International Atelier for Education and Art Therapy, which promotes education, inclusion, accessibility and wellness through art. The Museum currently works with over 450 organizations associated with schools, community groups and healthcare institutions to address issues such as school drop-out rates, stigmatization, violence, discrimination, poverty, illiteracy, radicalization, racism, homophobia, homelessness, obsession with body image, isolation, disabilities and suicide.

An approach founded on co-creation
Nathalie Bondil believes strongly in forging partnerships between the Museum and all of the city’s cultural actors. Bondil invested herself thoroughly in the city’s celebrations, as she took on the double mandate of Vice-President of the Society for the Celebration of Montreal’s 375th Anniversary and member of its programming committee.

The title of Knight of the Ordre de Montréal comes on top of a long list of decorations honouring her social and cultural commitment. The Vice-Chair of the Canada Council for the Arts, Ms. Bondil has received two honorary doctorates: one from McGill in 2013, and the other from the Université de Montréal in 2015. She was awarded the Medal of the National Assembly in 2016 and won a Femmes d’affaires du Québec award in 2017. Moreover, she was appointed Knight of the Ordre national du Québec in 2011, Member of the Order of Canada in 2015 and Knight of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres de la République française in 2008, before being promoted to Officer in 2016.

Congratulations Ms. Bondil!

To learn more Nathalie Bondil, read:
Nathalie Bondil – Executive Director and Chief Curator at The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (published 2017/2018)
Nathalie Bondil Awarded the Order of Canada (2016)
Nathalie Bondil (published in 2012)