09/14/2026
On Thursday September 10, we officially opened Art of a Good Death at Margaret’s Place Hospice, a powerful national exhibition inviting us to reflect on death, dying, grief, caregiving and what it means to experience a “good death.”
The exhibition grew out of research led by the Isenberg Lab at Bruyère Health Research Institute, in partnership with the University of Ottawa. Led by Dr. Sarina Isenberg, Chair in Mixed Methods Palliative Care Research at Bruyère Health Research Institute, Associate Professor at the University of Ottawa, and proud St. Joseph’s Villa Foundation Board Member, the project explored how art can help translate research into something people can see, feel and connect with.
Artists from across Canada were invited to interpret research about what makes a good death through their work. More than 100 submissions from artists across nine provinces were received, with selected works now travelling across the country through hospitals, hospices and art spaces. The initiative was supported by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Planning and Dissemination Grant.
The St. Joseph’s Villa Foundation is proud to support this stop of the exhibition during the month of September as part of our 5-year anniversary celebrations at Margaret’s Place Hospice. Hospice has become so much more than a place of care; it is also a place for connection, reflection, remembrance and important conversations about how we want to live and how we want to be cared for at the end of life.
Interested in learning more? Join us at our Open House weekends throughout the month of September for tours of Margaret’s Place Hospice and an opportunity to experience Art of a Good Death.
Margaret’s Place Hospice, 170 Ogilvie Street, Dundas
Open-house weekends:
September 19–20 & 26–27
Tours: 11am & 1pm
A special thank you to the incredible community partners who helped make opening night possible:
Installation by Bert & Deb Dorpmans McMaster Fine Art
Photography by Frank Liang
www.frankliangphotography.com
Catering by .start.hamont, a social enterprise by Wesley
Beer & wine by Mark at Barrel Heart Brewing & Blending
Espresso Bar by Krys Café Domestiique