A Princess's work

North American exhibit of Diana's life coming to T.O.

Like any proud sibling, Charles, the Ninth Earl of Spencer, wishes to better acquaint Canadians with his late sister, Diana.
Thanks to our Commonwealth ties, he wants us to know her the way he did. To do so required an opus of gigantic proportions thanks to the Diana's complex yet short life span, but he managed to do just that with Diana, A Celebration, an exhibition opening at Toronto's Design Exchange on December 19th.
"Canada has shown great affection for Diana," Spencer told a room of fellow journalists last week at a Design Exchange news conference. (Diana visited Canada three times including one visit to Toronto.)
"This exhibition puts her in a context as a girl and the person she turned into as you grew to know her as a Princess."
The memorabilia originates from the Althorp Estate in England, the Spencer family's ancestral home, where they have been displayed for three months a year since 1998. Since it's opening, the exhibition has raised more than $1,899,000 for charities supported by the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund. The Toronto exhibition proceeds will also go to these charities.
Spencer said he knew there was a public need for a memorial exhibition following the eight million calls the first day of ticket sales for Diana, A Celebration's start introduction.
"We thought we could do it better than anyone else because we knew her better than anyone else," he said explaining why they took on the large project.
Of the 150 items, the father of six said the 30,000 condolence books affected him the most.
"The most startling [object] for me is the bank of condolence books which brought home the global impact of Diana," he said, the pride evident in his voice.
Other objects chronicling her short life and its many milestones include toys and drawings from childhood to her wedding dress and royal jewels to an entire section devoted to her public life and her many charitable causes.
"The charitable work was done by someone who could have done very little with her life, who could have lived a life of pleasure and luxury, but chose to take on landmines, AIDS, lepers, the homeless," Spencer said.
"...She was clever turning the spotlight on her to her causes. Her life is an amazing achievement."
And not soon enough we can glimpse it firsthand.

Diana, A Celebration starts on December 19, 2003 for a limited run. Tickets range from $15 for children, $20 for seniors/students/Design Exchange members to $25 for adults. For tickets, telephone 416.872.1212. For exhibit information call 416.216.2130 or visit www.diana-celebration.com.

Publication Date: 2003-11-02
Story Location: http://tandemnews.com/viewstory.php?storyid=3308