Cultural Influences

Cultural Influences in Canadian Art

In the last century, Canada has emerged as one of the great successes of the world. Compassion, diversity, tolerance, freedom and openness, as well as immense spaces and extreme climate are some of the components that have shaped Canadian society. It is not surprising that those are also the traits that best describe the unique character of Canadian people. And what is culture if not the sum of what makes a people unique?

The composition of Canadian culture, and its influences, can be arbitrarily divided into three elements. Although Aboriginal cultures have always been a cultural influence in Canada, the richness of thousand-year-old traditions and the more than 50 indigenous languages spoken in Canada today are still being discovered and are increasingly appreciated and studied.

The dynamic relationship between Francophone and Anglophone Canadians has been one of the hallmarks of Canadian culture for the last 300 years, and bilingualism and multiculturalism are traits that continue to define us as Canadians.

Today, Canada is a pluralistic society, and a pluralistic culture. Immigrants have brought the world to Canada and have opened us to the world.

Cultures all over the world are feeling the pressures of globalization, and the rapid pace of technology. Canada is no exception. We are a strong supporter of the international initiatives to preserve and promote cultural diversity. By preserving cultural identities around the world, we are preserving culture itself.

Canadian culture is what brings meaning to being Canadian.