The MacLarenArtCentre is the regional public art gallery serving the residents of Barrie, the County of Simcoe and the surrounding area. The Gallery has a permanent collection of 26,600 works of art held in trust for the public and presents a year-round programme of world-class exhibitions, public art projects, education activities and special events.
In the Upper Canada of the 1820s, in the Village of Sharon, a small community known as the Children of Peace crafted, with simple tools but consummate skill and artistry, a dramatic architectural testament to its vision of a society founded on the values of peace, equality and social justice.The center piece of their activity was The Temple. Completed in 1832 and restored in 2011, it is now part of the Sharon National Historic Site, which encompasses nine historic buildings in a park like setting.