Wallace Collection of the wealthiest families in Europe. They owned large properties in England, Wales and Ireland, and increased their wealth through successful marriages. Politically of lesser importance, the 3rd and 4th Marquess and Sir Richard Wallace became leading art collectors of their time. The Wallace Collection, comprising about 5,500 works of art, was bequeathed to the British nation by Lady Wallace in 1897. The state then decided to buy Hertford House to display the collection and it was opened as a museum in 1900. As a museum the Wallace Collection's main strength is perhaps its extraordinary array of 18th-century French art:
Firestone Collection of Canadian Art "Le Salon: Celebrating 35 Years of the Firestone Collection of Canadian" "Art" also curated by Catherine Sinclair celebrated the history of the Collection and the contribution of the Firestones to the local art community. More recent exhibitions showing the breadth of the collection and artworks relating to geographic locations from across Canada include the 2010 exhibition "At Land’s End" showing artworks that explore the relationship between land and sea and the 2016 exhibition "Coast to Coast: Features from the Firestone Collection of Canadian Art" exploring works from artists across the nation. Firestone, O.J. "The Other A.Y. Jackson". Toronto: McClelland and