Saturday, September 29, 2012

Toronto's Nuit Blanche 2012, Sept 29


Toronto hosts its seventh annual Nuit Blanche tonight in and around the city's downtown core. From 7pm to sunrise, there will be over 150 free art events and exhibitions for the public to enjoy.

The centrepiece of the night will be a special exhibition of 14 projects in and below Toronto City Hall and Nathan Phillips Square. The selection is entitled Museum for the End of the World and was curated by Janine Marchessault and Michael Prokopow.

Other highlights include Christian Marclay's The Clock at the Power Plant; Kelly Mark’s film Scenes from a Film I’ll Never Make, With Alternate Scores at the Eaton Centre; and several events at TIFF Bell Lightbox including the interactive Movie Studio Playhouse, a looped visual installation compilation of 101 zombie death scenes Cent une tueries de zombies, and STRANGE LOVE/STRANGE LIVES: Silent Films with Live Piano Accompaniment.

Roads closed during the night include Bay Street between Gerrard Street and Wellington Street; Yonge Street from Dundas Street West to Wellington; Church Street between Shuter Street and Front Street; King Street between Jarvis and Peter; and Queen Street from Jarvis to University Ave.

Subways will run all night from Keele to Woodbine on the Bloor-Danforth line, and from St. Clair West to Eglinton on the Yonge-University-Spadina line. Trains will briefly stop running between 7:30am to 9am.

http://www.scotiabanknuitblanche.ca/


Scotiabank Nuit Blanche 2012

The seventh edition of Scotiabank Nuit Blanche takes place Saturday, September 29 from 7:03 p.m. until sunrise. This year's lineup includes 158 art projects created by more than 500 local, national and international artists. The streets of the city will come alive with public art, for one night only.

"Scotiabank Nuit Blanche is one of the marquee events of our city's cultural calendar," said Councillor Michael Thompson (Ward 37 Scarborough Centre), Chair of the City's Economic Development Committee. "This celebration continues to attract residents and visitors in record numbers resulting in significant economic gains for Toronto. This event is part of our commitment to culture and is a vital part of our economic strategy."

"We’re celebrating our seventh year as title sponsor of Scotiabank Nuit Blanche, Toronto’s innovative all-night contemporary art experience," said Duncan Hannay, Senior Vice-President, Marketing, Scotiabank. "Part of our commitment to local communities and building bright futures is support for the arts. This event spotlights each artist’s unique contribution to Toronto, and gives the public a free opportunity to experience these cultural gems."

The City is producing an exciting lineup of projects by exceptional artists lead by a talented group of curators.

“The Scotiabank Nuit Blanche Advisory Board is thrilled with the compelling artistic talent and vision that constitute this year's program lineup." said Dr. Sara Diamond, President and Vice Chancellor, OCAD University. "The public will be dazzled by the diversity of the works of art presented by this year's curators and artists, which are sure to satiate this city's appetite for culture."

City-produced exhibition projects
The City-produced component of the event will feature four curated exhibitions.

City Hall / Nathan Phillips Square
Janine Marchessault and Michael Prokopow's exhibition "Museum for the End of the World" represents a vibrant and varied investigation of art and life under the veil of oblivion and possibility.

Exhibition highlights
• Jean Michel Crettaz and Mark-David Hosale's "Quasar 2.0: Star Incubator" explores the cycles of creation through light and sound in the underground parking garage at Toronto City Hall.
• "Postcards from the End", an interactive installation by Sara Beck, examines what happens when photo-ops and disaster come together beneath Nathan Phillips Square.
• Nathaniel Dett Chorale's "I Dream A World" extends an invitation to evolutionary spirits everywhere with a unique musical performance on Nathan Phillips Square.
• The Rotunda of Toronto City Hall will be transformed by Marco Brambilla's video work "Civilization (Megaplex)" with a satirical take on eternal punishment and celestial reward.

Exhibition Zone A (Downtown South/West)
Curator Shauna McCabe's exhibition "DRIFT" offers encounters with the city that highlight the consistency of urban space as fluid and poetic.

Exhibition highlights
• Yves Caizergues' installation "Green Invaders", inspired by the iconic video games of the 1980s, reconnects people with beginning of the technological era.
• "Lighthouse", a Catherine Yass film visually surveys a lighthouse in the English Channel from the perspective of a helicopter, a boat and underwater divers in the TIFF Bell Lightbox.
• In "Dollar General Drive By" Tim Davis records western New York State's small-town streetscapes, changing economic times and everyday life along King Street West.
• Matthew Moore's work "Lifecycles" transforms David Pecaut Square with time-lapse photography of microscopic growth cycles on a circular screen.

Exhibition Zone B (Downtown Central/East)
Christina Ritchie curates "Bodies and Buildings", an exhibition inviting viewers to consider how their passage through the city contributes to the construction of its chronicles and traditions.

Exhibition highlights
• "Darkning" by Ceal Floyer demonstrates the thrilling celestial drama of lightning modified through video at the Richmond Adelaide Centre.
• Jeanne Holmes' "All Together Now" is an experiential dance collaboration that invites public participation outside the Richmond Adelaide Centre.
• Neil Campbell's "Pair" focuses on the perceptual process and invites the audience to engage with the space surrounding two sculptural spheres located between Osgoode Hall and the University Avenue Courthouse.
• In "Ambient Walk”, Ed Janzen documents the city’s alleys in real time via live stream video from the perspective of his feet.

Exhibition Zone C (Downtown East)
Curated by Helena Reckitt, the exhibition "Once More with Feeling" presents works which reference and evoke repetition and emotion, recognizing the power of memorial and re-enactment.

Exhibition highlights
• Trisha Brown Dance Company restages their performance of "Planes" (1968). Dancers work against gravity as they perform on a vertical stage at Dundee Place.
• During "Smells Like Spirit" roadies perpetually “load-in” Nirvana for a final concert at the loading dock of the Elgin Theatre in this piece by Hadley+Maxwell.
• Susan Stenger's work "The Structures Of Everyday Life: Full Circle" will fill the bandstand in St. James Park with a rhythmic soundscape comprised of different voices in different keys.
• Dave Dyment amasses a comprehensive collection of disaster cinema tropes in "The Day After, Tomorrow" at King James Place on King Street East.

Symposium & Nuit Talks
Symposium entitled "Until the End of the World"
On September 29 three world-renowned philosophers: Arthur Kroker, Brenda Longfellow and Slavoj Žižek consider the profound ecological and economic issues that confront the Planet in 2012 at Toronto City Hall.

Nuit Talks
A series of free themed talks take place September 27, 28 and 29. The talks allow for candid discussion, contemplation of the creative vision and a behind-the-scenes look at the art and artists.
Discussions explore the possible extinction of contemporary art, the role of the paranormal in contemporary art and curators will share the curatorial and artistic narratives of their exhibition areas. A full list of events, speakers, locations and times is available online.

Community-produced, independent projects
The community-produced portion of Scotiabank Nuit Blanche 2012 will feature 96 projects created by cultural and educational institutions, neighbourhoods and individual artists. The projects expand the boundaries of the event and showcase the diversity of Toronto’s arts community. The Power Plant, Ryerson University, Regent Park Arts & Cultural Centre and many more organizations are hosting important projects in their unique venues. Entire neighbourhoods including Parkdale, Queen West and The Distillery District will feature multiple installations by local artists.

Travel packages
Book a two-night stay with any Scotiabank Nuit Blanche hotel partner and receive an exclusive invitation to be among the first to experience "Museum for the End of the World" at a special preview event called "Behind the Nuit" on Friday September 28. This offer includes an opportunity to meet with the curators and artists at a private reception. Whether you're planning a weekend getaway or looking for a spot to recharge after a long night, 13 hotel partners offer rates and packages for any budget.

Complete information on all travel packages can be found at http://www.scotiabanknuitblanche.ca/travel-packages.

About Scotiabank Nuit Blanche
Full details are now available at http://www.scotiabanknuitblanche.ca. Look for updates on Facebook at facebook.com/sbnuitblancheTO and follow us on Twitter at @sbnuitblancheTO, #snbTO. High resolution images and background information about the event are available to media at http://www.toronto.ca/special_events/nuitblanche/nuitblanche_media.htm.

Scotiabank Nuit Blanche is Toronto’s annual all-night celebration of contemporary art, produced by the City of Toronto in collaboration with Toronto’s arts community. Since 2006, the event has featured more than 700 official art installations, created by nearly 3,000 artists and has generated more than $100 million in economic impact for Toronto.

No comments:

Post a Comment