The exterior gives no hint of the light and openness inside this beautifully designed gallery. The space is dramatic, and the paintings imaginatively displayed. Throughout, audiovisual presentations and interactive computer exhibits provide information on particular paintings or schools of painters.

The European collections are fine, but the Canadian galleries are the real treat. The paintings by the Group of Seven -- which includes Tom Thomson, F. H. Varley, and Lawren Harris -- are extraordinary. In addition, other galleries show the genesis of Canadian art from earlier to more modern artists. And don't miss the extensive collection of Inuit art.

The Henry Moore Sculpture Centre, with more than 800 pieces (original plasters, bronzes, maquettes, woodcuts, lithographs, etchings, and drawings), is the largest public collection of his works. The artist gave them to Toronto because he was so moved by the citizens' enthusiasm for his work -- public donations bought his sculpture The Archer to decorate Nathan Phillips Square at City Hall after politicians refused to free up money for it. In one room, under a glass ceiling, 20 or so of his large works stand like silent prehistoric rock formations. Along the walls flanking a ramp are color photographs showing Moore's major sculptures in their natural locations, which reveal their magnificent dimensions.

The European collection ranges from the 14th century to the French Impressionists and beyond. Works by Pissarro, Monet, Boudin, Sisley, and Renoir fill an octagonal room. De Kooning's Two Women on a Wharf and Karel Appel's Black Landscape are just two of the modern pieces. There are several works of particular interest to admirers of the pre-Raphaelite painters, including one by Waterhouse. Among the sculptures, you'll find two beauties -- Picasso's Poupée and Brancusi's First Cry.

Behind the gallery, connected by an arcade, stands the Grange. Dating back to 1817, it's Toronto's oldest surviving brick house, and it was the gallery's first permanent space. Originally the home of the Boulton family, it was a gathering place for many of the city's social and political leaders and for such eminent guests as Matthew Arnold, Prince Kropotkin, and Winston Churchill. Meticulously restored and furnished to reflect the 1830s, it is a living museum of mid-19th-century Toronto life. Entrance is free with admission to the art gallery.

The gallery has an attractive restaurant, Agora, which is open for lunch, as well as a cafeteria and a gallery shop. There's also a full program of films, concerts, and lectures.