Type: Museum

This museum collects, preserves, and displays thousands of shoes of an historical nature.

Programming:

Conservation/Preservation:

Digital Archive

Highlights from past exhibits, both Main and ‘Snapshot’, featuring digital photographs and historical contextualization for the artefacts.

Public Programming:

Exhibitions:

Main Exhibits:

One semi-permanent and three changing exhibitions in specially-designed galleries.

Past exhibits include:
The Roaring Twenties: Heels, Hemlines and High Spirits, Art in Shoes, Shoes in Beauty, Identity, Pride, Native North American Footwear, All About Shoes: Footwear Through the Ages.

Snapshot Exhibits:

Occasional small-scale themed displays, on view for one or more weeks, consisting of three to ten display cases, which are usually in the lobby and/or lower (B1) level.

Past exhibits include The New Woman 1890’s – 1910’s: These Boots Were Made For Walking, Pitter Patter: Little Feet and the Influence of Adult Styles.

Online exhibitions

All About Shoes:

This online exhibition features stories and artifacts, based on the Museum’s existing collection, that focus on the footwear traditions of Aboriginal groups and Canada’s multicultural communities.

On Canadian Ground: Stories of Footwear in Early Canada:

Hosted by the Virtual Museum of Canada, this bilingual exhibition website allows visitors to listen to audio clips, explore artifacts and learn about the various methods of footwear production used by skilled aboriginal and immigrant peoples.

On Canadian Ground features the largest display of three-dimensional photography in an online exhibition to date. For the first time ever, visitors can ‘handle’ artifacts from the collection online.

Tours

Group and School tours daily, focusing on main exhibits as well as highlighting the architecture of the museum building

Special Events

A variety of special tours and events.

Past special events include films and lecture series pertaining to non-permanent exhibits, and hands-on demonstrations with artefacts.

Volunteer/Internship/Placement Opportunities:

Recruits Docents every fall season for the upcoming calendar year.

Address & Contact Information:

327 Bloor Street West
Toronto, ON
M5S 1W7

Phone: 416.979.7799 x 228
Email: sheila.knox@batashoemuseum.ca
Website: http://www.batashoemuseum.ca

Hours of Operation:

Monday – Wednesday 10am-5pm
Thursday 10am-8pm
Friday-Saturday 10am-5pm
Sunday 12pm-5pm

Closed December 25 and Good Friday

Key Words: culture, fashion