With all the pedestrian gridlock, it might take a week to catch all 134 projects at this year's all night contemporary art thing. Here are a few of this year's most-hyped exhibits.
As Toronto’s biggest night for artistic interaction with the city, Nuit Blanche means different things to everyone.
To the most optimistic of art-lovers, its a magical marathon of LED and pill-fueled revelry that often culminates with impromptu raves in city parking lots. To others, it’s a cause for great consternation, as the dense pedestrian gridlock gets infinitely more frustrating as the years go by.
Toronto’s all-night contemporary art thing has just revealed its full slate of exhibits for this year, and from the looks of things, we’d all be wise to catch up on our sleep in advance of Oct. 1, because it’s definitely going to take all night to experience all 134 projects scattered all over downtown, from Roncesvalles all the way to the Distillery District. Heck, it might even take a week.
But will Nuit Blanche live up to the hype? One essential skill for enjoyment is decoding the program’s art-speak to figure out if the exhibits will actually be worth the wait. With that in mind, here’s a first look at a few of the most-hyped exhibits, with a few bits of armchair analysis.
Flightpath Toronto (pictured above)
The press release says: “Nathan Phillips Square will be transformed by artists Natalie Jeremijenko and Usman Haque. The public is invited to participate in the possibilities and wonder of urban flight above the square.”
What it probably means: If you can endure what will most certainly be a mega-long wait, you might get the chance to fly through Nathan Phillips Square. But let’s hope the harness holds, because a fall onto that mass of cold, unforgiving concrete would hurt real bad.
L’écho-l’eau
The press release says: “Step back 100 years in time at the MaRS building for Richard Purdy’s interactive log run.”
What it probably means: The Nuit Blanche website urges onlookers to arrive in raingear (boots and an umbrella) for this one, suggesting some kind of amazing indoor river/waterfall or a kiddie pool with a few floating twigs. Tough to say. Proceed with caution.
Erratic
The press release says: “Germaine Koh re-enacts the geological processes that have shaped the region by rolling a section of boulder down Yonge Street.”
What it probably means: When we first heard about it, we gleefully imagined the boulder scene from Indiana Jones. Or at least this giant Lego boulder. But the boulder in the pic above looks pretty puny. Excitement is tempered for this one.
Heart Machine
The press release says: “Christine Irving’s interactive fire sculpture ‘Heart Machine,’ which premiered at Burning Man in 2010, makes its Canadian debut.”
What it probably means: The description is vague enough to pique our interest, and the website promises that a motion sensor setup will cause flames to “shoot up to 25 feet into the air from 16-foot-tall columns.” If this description is legit, we’re officially stoked.
Face Music
The website says: “This group of soft-skinned robotic sculptures compose their own music with input from participants. Micro-video cameras mounted on the robots move toward people’s bodies and faces while capturing human snapshots.”
What it probably means: Ken Rinaldo’s sound installation at Yonge-Dundas Square will be one of the night’s essential exhibits. We’ll try it out for sure, but we’ve still got no idea how it actually works.
Intensity
The website says: “Typical of seductive condo marketing, Intensity lures the participant with hollow promises of an improved lifestyle through enticing tag lines and an offer to view a luxury model suite. Enter this world and emerge in the middle of a vast, sprawling tent city. But not for long! You are about to be ‘evicted.’”
What it probably means: Sound and lighting will make or break this installation, the effects of which could land anywhere between moving commentary on Toronto’s waterfront tent city circa 2001, all the way to a disappointing Canadian Tire in-store camping set-up.
public preposition No. 3/swing stage
The press release says: “Mischa Kuball’s work alters a city skyscraper by echoing the act of cleaning a window.”
What it probably means: The exhibit will put the death-defying life of a window cleaner on full display at 250 Yonge Street, but will it be anywhere near as cool as the massive light-up pong game on City Hall from a few Nuits ago? We’re thinking not.
A City Sleepover
The website says: “You are invited to participate in a giant civic slumber party. Roll out your sleeping bag and get cozy in your favourite pjs as we come together to stay awake for the Nuit.”
What it probably means: Last year, the lineup to get a glimpse of Lower Bay Station was a mile long, even at 2am. But for the awesomely creepy chance to camp out underground? Better bust out your sleeping bag and crash on Bay Street a few nights early!
The Tie-break
The website says: “Tibi Tibi Neuspiel and Geoffrey Pugen recreate the legendary fourth-set tie-breaker from the 1980 Wimbledon Finals between Björn Borg and John McEnroe.”
What it probably means: Historically faithful performance art piece, or two hipsters pretending to play tennis in the financial district? You decide.
