. "0"^^ . . . "5"^^ . "2010-03-14T00:00:00"^^ . "3"^^ . "0"^^ . "The AGO has finally come into its own. This is a great place to spend a day and although I hate to see a cultural institution that is heavily subsidised by the government charge an absurd amount for its general admission, I painfully have to admit that it is worth every penny.\nThe good news is that Wednesday nights are free. The bad news is that Wednesday night just doesn't give you enough of an opportunity to take everything in that this gallery has to offer.\nI even hate to call it a gallery. It is much more of a museum. It houses everything from paintings and sculptured to models and ornate figurines and snuff boxes.\nThe amount of Canadiana art is defiantly to be marvelled at and it takes up a good portion of the gallery floors. The range is from settler art, native art, group of seven to modern Canadian artists. However, the gallery also houses a huge amount of classical European art.\nThere is also a great collection of African art which focuses on sculptures and effigies from all over the continent.\nThere are paintings from the greats that range from Rembrandt to Picasso, but you can also travel up to the fifth floor and see a range of work from Andy Warhol and Rothko to Yoko Ono.\nThe five floors of this gallery cover an immense range of work that I would argue rivals any other art gallery in the world. The power of the AGO is in the quality of its collection and not in the quantity of the collection and yet the amount of work to behold is staggering.\nThe great thing about the AGO is that the building is really a work of art in itself. Take your time and bask in the surroundings. They are special and should really be taken in as much as the works that the building holds. There are many placed around the gallery to sit back and enjoy yourself. There are a couple of great coffee bars around the gallery to chill out and recharge on your way through the place. A great stop off point is on the main floor in the Grange. The Grange is an old estate house that is connected to the AGO building and is situated at the back of the main level. There is a caf\u00E9 that is in the front room of the old house that looks out on the park and you can grab a bite to eat and something to drink. Another great place to grab an espresso (or other caffeine infused drink) is on the fifth floor. Nice leather swivel chairs line a big shaded window that looks out on the city skyline of Toronto, out in the openness of the modern art surrounding the small caf\u00E9 area. \nAnother thing to look out for are the free lectures that often take place in the hall on the third floor. They are well worth it and if you want a sample of what you will get, the AGO release free podcasts of past lectures on their website.\nThis place is a gem of Toronto and should be taken advantage of to the fullest."^^ .