Yes, it’s time to get cozy with your computer, with the NOTL Museum Virtual Lecture Series, bringing
together a unique offering of specialists, storytellers, hobbyists, and lovers of history. The virtual
lectures are offered weekly, via Zoom, on Wednesday mornings at 11am: January 24, January 31,
February 7, February 14, February 21, and February 28.
Art of Portraiture: January 24: 11 am
The first of the series is The Art of Portraiture, presented by Debra Antoncic, Director and Curator for
RiverBrink Art Museum. An art historian, Dr. Antoncic will illustrate how the impulse to capture a
likeness of an individual has a long history, one that dates back thousands of years. Portraits, however,
conveyed much more than just a likeness. “Your portrait told the world all about you,” said Antoncic.
“It showed your status, wealth, personality, and a host of other details.” This presentation is a perfect
complement to the NOTL Museum’s current exhibition Strike a Pose, which looks at how we have
recorded our likeness for centuries.
Our Best Face Forward: January 31: 11am
The second in the series is Our Best Face Forward: The Selfie in Visual Culture, another complement to
the museum’s exhibit. Sonia de Lazzer, professor in Art History, Visual Culture and Curatorial Studies at
Brock University, will look at the ‘selfie obsession’ in contemporary culture, and the intersections of
technology, psychology, and society, from capturing our image on earth-orbiting spacewalks, to the
massive self documentation on social media.
The North Star: February 7: 11am
The third in the series introduces Julian Sher to the NOTL Museum, with The North Star: Canada and
the Civil War Plots Against Lincoln. Award-winning journalist and author, Julian Sher, has created a
sweeping novel that tells the story of the Canadians and a handful of Confederate agents who played a
much darker role in supporting the enslaved South than our history books tell us, and their participation
in the formation of plots against Lincoln. As an investigative reporter, Sher worked for the Toronto Star,
the Globe and Mail, and was a senior producer for CBC's The Fifth Estate.
Stay tuned for more information on the final three of the Virtual Lecture Series: Ordnance Boundary
Stones: Updates and Restoration (Feb 14) ; The Borderland: Black Agency and Resistance Between
Two Nations (Feb 21) ; and Historically Hysterical (Feb 28).
Registration is required to receive a Zoom Link: www.notlmuseum.ca
For more information: Ph. 905 468 3912.