Gordon and Jill Rawlinson, Rawlco Radio donate $1M to Remai Modern

The Remai Modern Art Gallery received a major gift of $1 million from Gordon and Jill Rawlinson and Rawlco Radio on Thursday.

The gift provides for the Free Admission Program, which will ensure free access to the entire museum, six days each year for five years. Rawlco Radio will be an active partner with the museum, promoting Remai Modern events—including free admission days—in the community.

The donation from Gordon and Jill Rawlinson and Rawlco Radio is the lead gift for Remai Modern’s “Making Our House a Home” appeal. The appeal is raising funds to complete the museum’s community spaces, so they are fully equipped to educate, inspire and involve every visitor. The priorities are funds to support learning and engagement programs, including exhibitions, film screenings, etc.; accessibility; and the visitor experience, including children’s play equipment, technology, displays and seating.

“The target of providing free admission lies at the heart of the engagement vision for Remai Modern; it’s a milestone for us in terms of our goals for the organization,” said Gregory Burke, Remai Modern Executive Director & CEO.

“On behalf of Remai Modern and the City of Saskatoon, I applaud Gordon and Jill Rawlinson and Rawlco Radio for their vision and generosity. We are very grateful.”

“My brother Doug and I have been in the radio business our entire lives,” said Gordon Rawlinson. “Our father, E.A. (Ed) Rawlinson, taught us the importance of giving back to the communities we serve. We’re proud to own and operate 650 CKOM, C95 and Rock 102 in Saskatoon, as we have for almost 35 years.”

“Remai Modern is a fantastic facility, and Jill and I are delighted that our donation is funding the Free Admission Program, which will help make the museum accessible to everyone.”

“The Free Admission Program is extremely important to us,” said Pam Leyland, Rawlco Radio President. “The fact that anyone will be able to visit the entire gallery, six times a year at no charge, makes us happy and proud.”

Gordon and Jill Rawlinson are well-known for their philanthropy, especially in the areas of the arts, health and education.

They have made major donations to organizations throughout the province, including: Persephone Theatre; the founding gift to the University of Saskatchewan’s Rawlinson Centre for Aboriginal Students at The Edwards School of Business, St. Paul’s Hospital Foundation, the Hospitals of Regina Foundation for the Rawlco Centre for Mother Baby Care at Regina General Hospital, the E.A. Rawlinson Centre for the Visual and Performing Arts in Prince Albert, the Dekker Centre for the Performing Arts in North Battleford, the United Way in Saskatoon and Regina, the Red Cross in Saskatchewan and STARS Air Ambulance.

Rawlco Radio Ltd. operates seven radio stations: three in Saskatoon, three in Regina, and one in Calgary. The Saskatoon stations are C95 FM, Rock 102 FM, and 650 CKOM.

Remai Modern is a new museum of modern and contemporary art coming to life in Saskatoon. Opening in 2017, it aims to be a vibrant, imaginative and prescient museum affirming the powerful role that art and artists play in questioning, interpreting and defining the modern era.

Remai Modern is home to the world’s foremost collection of Picasso linocut prints, and aspires to be a leading centre for contemporary indigenous art programming.