Art meets brunch
A hearty helping of brunch-inspired art to whet the appetite before Brunch Club launches May 25
![Black and white photograph of three people seated at lunch](/sites/default/files/styles/max_1300x1300/public/2024-05/AGO.126575.jpg?itok=qXRBnFiU)
Arnold Newman. [Igor Stravinsky, Vera de Bosset Stravinsky, and Robert Craft at lunch] from Bravo Stravinsky. Gelatin silver print, Overall: 19 × 31.1 cm. Art Gallery of Ontario. Anonymous Gift, 2012. © Arnold Newman Properties/Getty Images (2024). 2015/4678
While much has been said about the social phenomenon that is brunch – from academic histories to class-conscious reflections – its most enthusiastic advocate was its first: British journalist Guy Beringer, the man credited with first putting that word into print. In 1895, Beringer wrote “Brunch: A Plea” for Hunter’s Weekly, espousing the benefits of a late social breakfast on Sunday, “... Brunch is a hospitable meal; breakfast is not. Eggs and bacon are adapted to solitude; they are consoling, but not exhilarating. They do not stimulate conversation. Brunch, on the contrary, is cheerful, sociable, and inciting. It is talk-compelling. It puts you in a good temper; it makes you satisfied with yourself and your fellow-beings. It sweeps away the worries and cobwebs of the week...”
While brunch is a much-loved Toronto pastime, on Saturday, May 25, the AGO Bistro launches a new spin on an old classic – Brunch Club. This experience blends artmaking, conversation and delightful bites that are best shared. To whet your appetite, we dug through the AGO Collection to set the table.
![Satirical drawing of aristocrats at tea](/sites/default/files/styles/max_1300x1300/public/2024-05/AGO.114427.jpg?itok=MwtJxqoI)
Adrien-Pierre-Francois Godefroy. Le The Parisien, c. 1800. Engraving with watercolor (hand colouring) on laid paper, Sheet: 42 × 51.2 cm. Art Gallery of Ontario. Purchase from the Trier-Fodor Fund, 2014. Photo © AGO. 2013/311
![Black & White photography of French cafe culture mid-century](/sites/default/files/styles/max_1300x1300/public/2024-05/AGO.143950.jpg?itok=O6c7IoKN)
Team Editorial Services. Cafe Society, 1969-1979. Gelatin silver print, Overall: 23.6 x 35.6 cm. Art Gallery of Ontario. Anonymous Gift, 2020. Photo © AGO. 2022/564
![colour polaroid of people at brunch in America, 1982](/sites/default/files/styles/max_1300x1300/public/2024-05/AGO.155407-preview.jpg?itok=jfZBKlmL)
Zun Lee. 1982 [People standing by buffet of food, man sitting down and looking over his shoulder], 1982. chromogenic print, Overall: 8.8 × 11.2 cm. Art Gallery of Ontario. Fade Resistance Collection. Purchase, with funds donated by Martha LA McCain, 2018. Photo AGO. 2018/3094
![Black and white photo of people dining onboard a ship in 1906](/sites/default/files/styles/max_1300x1300/public/2024-05/AGO.158927-preview.jpg?itok=X5XKTsRI)
Unknown. Shipboard, Fort de France, Martinique, 1906, 1906. nitrate , Art Gallery of Ontario. Montgomery Collection of Caribbean Photographs. Purchase, with funds from Dr. Liza & Dr. Frederick Murrell, Bruce Croxon & Debra Thier, Wes Hall & Kingsdale Advisors, Cindy & Shon Barnett, Donette Chin-Loy Chang, Kamala-Jean Gopie, Phil Lind & Ellen Rolan. © Art Gallery of Ontario 2019/1150
![oil on canvas of coffee pot and fruits](/sites/default/files/styles/max_1300x1300/public/2024-05/AGO.42965-preview.jpg?itok=HCkpiqzZ)
Pierre Bonnard. La Table Garnie, c. 1924. oil on canvas, Overall: 38.1 x 55.9 cm. Art Gallery of Ontario. Purchase, 1935. © Art Gallery of Ontario. 2303
Brunch Club launches at the AGO Bistro on Saturday, May 25 at 11:30 a.m. For more details and to register, visit ago.ca/events/brunch-club.