Special Examination Report—National Gallery of Canada
At a Glance Special Examination Report—National Gallery of Canada
What we examined (see Focus of the audit)
The National Gallery of Canada is a federal Crown corporation with a mandate under the Museums Act to develop, maintain, and make known, throughout Canada and internationally, a collection of works of art, both historic and contemporary, with special but not exclusive reference to Canada. It also has a mandate to further knowledge, understanding, and enjoyment of art in general among all Canadians. The Corporation reports to Parliament through the Minister of Canadian Heritage.
Our objective for this audit was to determine whether the systems and practices we selected for examination at the National Gallery of Canada were providing it with reasonable assurance that its assets were safeguarded and controlled, its resources were managed economically and efficiently, and its operations were carried out effectively as required by section 138 of the Financial Administration Act.
Overall message
We found that the Corporation had a significant deficiency in how it managed collection conservation. Some requirements of its Conservation Policy were not met. For example, it did not have an approved plan for the conservation of technology-dependent art objects. We also found that the Corporation lacked written formal procedures and guidelines for the approval, documentation, and review of treatment-related activities, and for ensuring that such activities were accurately tracked and reported. We noted that the Corporation had some good conservation-related practices, such as controlling environmental conditions and access to its collection.
What we found about …
Corporate management practices
Management of operations
Entity Responses to Recommendations
The Corporation agrees with our recommendations and has responded (see List of Recommendations).
Related information
| Report of the | Auditor General of Canada |
|---|---|
| Type of product | Special Examination |
| Topics | |
| Entities | |
| Completion date | 11 March 2019 |
| Tabling date | 8 July 2020 |
For more information
Media Relations
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E-mail: infomedia@oag-bvg.gc.ca
