film review: Once Upon A Time in Gaza

 

Directed by Tarzan and Arab Nasser

ChinoKino rating: A- 

Review by Allan Tong 

  

    The Toronto Palestine Film Festival opened last night with the strong Cannes-winning Once Upon A Time in Gaza. It's an artfully done genre picture about two small-time drug dealers and a corrupt cop, and takes place in two sections covering 2007 and 2009.

    We follow Osama (charismatic Majd Eid, above in purple) and partner Yahya (Nader Arb Alhay, above right) who run a falafel joint in Gaza. Really, they deal in stolen pharmaceuticals that they hide in their sandwiches. They're small-time crooks who take bong hits and dream of better days under occupation. Both Hamas and Israel are tightening their grip around Gaza. Yahya can't visit his family in the West Bank an hour away because the Israeli authorities won't let him. He's never left Gaza and is literally stuck there. Meanwhile, Osama battles a corrupt cop (Ramzi Maqdisi has presence) who demands a cut of Osama's business. Osama is fearless, perhaps reckless.

 

    Without giving away spoilers, the film jumps ahead two years. The switch is jarring, like the break in Hitchcock's Psycho or Wong Kar-Wai's Chungking Express. "So, where is this going?" I asked myself. Be patient, however, and you will see how the two acts connect. Let's just say that one day an enthusiastic director (Isaaq Elias) spots Yahya in a restaurant and wants to cast him as the hero in a cheesy action series, The Rebel. The government-backed TV program will showcase a heroic militant who died a martyr. Yahya hasn't acted a second in his life, but he looks perfect.

    The satire continues as we see them film. The budget is so low that they use real bullets on set. Real Hamas militants mingle with fake ones, while Palestinians double as IDF soldiers. Everything is shot on the twisting streets of Gaza (in reality, Jordan for this film) as families look on. With such small circles overlapping, Yahya inevitably runs into the corrupt cop. Their paths collide in a surprise ending. At the end, I asked, What is martyrdom?

    Does the story hold together? Yeah, surprisingly. Credit the Nasser Brothers for keeping the satire deadpanned so that the story's twists and turns are convincing. Their gritty approach keeps the movie grounded. Sets are relentlessly dark and claustrophobic. The viewer feels trapped like its anti-heroes. Life is absurd and painful in Gaza.

     The Nasser Brothers began writing the film in 2015. Apart from quoting Trump's idiotic speech of building a riviera heard over the opening titles, Once Upon A Time in Gaza does not address what is happening now. (It's set in Gaza, because it's the brothers' hometown.) However, politics are inescapable in any film about Gaza. TV reports are sprinkled throughout the film, like a Greek chorus, about Israel building a wall and Hamas defiantly standing tall. That said, this is not a jingoistic picture. Politics is part of everyday life.

    The Nasser Brothers captured the best director award at Cannes' Un Certain Regard last May. Each scene is skillfully executed. Performances are tight, particularly by Majd Eid who commands the screen. There are nods to filmmakers, such as Coppola. The writing and photography are tight.

    Once Upon A Time in Gaza is the right choice to open (sold out) the Palestine Film Festival, which runs through October 3 at the TIFF Lightbox. Also programmed are art receptions, book signings, and a concert by the group Dam at Lee's Palace (sold out). Tickets and passes are available at TPFF.

art review: The Beatles in India

  

by Allan Tong

"I need to find myself," Paul Saltzman proclaimed in late 1967. Life lacked meaning for the 24-year-old Toronto filmmaker. Only India attracted him, and by chance he caught wind of a documentary crew needing a sound man to record there. So, what if never recorded audio? He bluffed the job interview, begged someone to teach him sound and, with $200 in his pocket ($1,800 today), Paul flew to New Delhi on December 4. 

During the filming of Juggernaut somewhere near Rajasthan, Paul received a letter from his girlfriend back home. She wrote she was breaking up with him and, even worse, was moving in with another guy. A knife plunged into his heart. Screams gripped his skull. Then, one of the crew members suggested he try meditation to ease the heartbreak.

In early February, Paul journeyed to Rishikesh in northern India, nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas, so he could study under Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, one of the world's most famous gurus. In fact, The Beatles' embrace of the Maharishi put him in the spotlight. Though Paul had attended a Beatles concert in Toronto back in 1964, he wasn't a huge fan and didn't know the band were in Rishikesh. In fact, Paul couldn't enter the ashram because The Beatles were there. He had to wait eight days before he was allowed in.

 "I was taught meditation in five minutes, and I did meditation for 30 minutes. It was a complete miracle. The knife in the heart was gone. The screaming in the head was gone. I was in a state of bliss."

After a few days, The Beatles started chatting and joking with Paul. One day, he was sitting with John when the head Beatle asked, "So, what are you doing here?" Paul revealed his heartbreak.

Replied Lennon, "Ah, yes, love can be very hard on us, can't it, Paul?"

"Yes," agreed the Canadian.

Lennon looked away, then glanced back and said, "You know, the great thing about love is you always get another chance."

Lennon's reassuring words were a gift, but Paul could not have known that Lennon himself was probably talking about himself. Lennon was secretly in love with a new woman, Yoko Ono, and would soon leave his wife, Cynthia, who was part of the ashram here. Paul had noted the icy distance between the married couple in the ashram.

Paul's other key memory of that week happened when he was sitting alone with George Harrison. "I'm just going to practice the sitar," said The Beatle who had introduced his band mates to meditation and helped launch Indian music in the West. "Do you want to come?"

Recalls Paul, "We go to his small meditation room, small, like our knees are almost touching. He picks up the sitar. Everything else was white, except the wood on the sitar. He starts to play and I close my eyes. It was a transcendent experience. I don't know if he played 10 or 40 minutes. It was timeless. As he finished playing, I opened my eyes, and I could see energy in the room--I had never seen that before--because I was in a state of bliss."

With no trace of ego, Harrison then said, "The Beatles have all the money you can dream. We have all the fame you could wish for. But it isn't love. It isn't health. It isn't peace inside." 

Paul chokes back tears as recalls that moment to a room full of people who've come to view his photographs of The Beatles in Rishikesh 57 years later in Toronto. "That was life-changing. He was a man of profound humility. True humility is recognizing your size in the universe.

 

Paul was speaking at a special reception hosted at the splendid Space* / Markham Street Gallery in downtown Toronto on a humid early evening on July 24. Many of his 54 photos of the Beatles adorn the walls on one floor of this new gallery. There are photos of John and Paul in white kurtas and sandals as they strum guitars, of Ringo aiming his 8mm home movie camera, of George relaxing in the shade. Photos capture some of the Beatles' celebrity entourage, including Donovan, Beach Boy Mike Love, Mia Farrow and her sister, Prudence, who inspired John Lennon to write The White Album ballad, Dear Prudence. They all came to literally to sit at the feet of the Maharishi, as captured in the exhibit's centerpiece.

 

Paul didn't unearth the photos for 30 years until his daughter, who became a Beatles fan, learned that her had met The Beatles and wanted to see the images. Since 2000, Paul has exhibited the photos around the world, published books, and made a film about his fateful week. He's been organizing 16-day tours across India to Rishikesh (22 days including a pilgrimage to Bhutan), even at the age of 82. When he first showcase his photos in the early 2000s, The Beatles legally challenged Paul, who later won. By 2005, at least Ringo had changed his tune--he signed several photos (all bought by a local collector, confirms a Space* manager.)   

Paul never thought of asking the band for autographs, but gained their permission to snap a few photos.The images are significant, because they captured the most influential band of their era about to enter a new phase of their careers. Only five months earlier, the band had lost their manager, Brian Epstein to an accidental overdose of sleeping pills. They left London as they were about to launch their new company, Apple, to protect their earnings from Britain's punitive supertax of the time, but would ironically  destroy the band. In mid-February 1968, their Magical Mystery Tour, was riding the top of the American album charts, while the revolutionary Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band was still in the top 20, nine months after release. Despite this material success, The Beatles, led by George and his wife Pattie, sought spiritual peace thousands of miles away in the hills of India. 

Only twice did Paul Saltzman pull out his Pentax, capturing the Beatles at their most relaxed and unguarded. They are unshaven and smiling. They play music in the sun and shade. The pressures of being a Beatle are miles away. The riffs and songs that John, Paul and George composed in Rishikesh wound up on the celebrated White Album nine turbulent months later. There's no trace of psychedelia in these images, no hint of the furor that will arise later in 1968: The Beatles fighting in the studio, Apple bleeding money soon after lauching, and the public turning against John and his new soulmate, Yoko.

Paul Saltzman's photos capture The Beatles in their last moment of group unity, when the sky remained limitless.

IDS 2025: brass, salmon and wood

 

Toronto's hip and beautiful braved the polar vortex last night to party at IDS, the annual Interior Design Show, which showcases the world of furnishings and anything pretty that belongs in a home. IDS takes place at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre's north building, next to the CN Tower, and runs January 23-26.

 As usual, the first two days, January 23-24, are devoted to the design industry, then the weekend, January 25-26, is open to the public.If you're looking for a new way to design your bathroom, this is the place. If you want to see the latest in tables, chairs and entire kitchens, this will inspire you. Vendors, mostly Canadian and some from abroad, such as Buzzispace, abound. Heavy hitters Cosentino, Ateliers Jacob and House of Rohl return. 

Meanwhile, IDS continues to showcase new talent though the LIV Design Studio. This year's challenge is for students to design a lobby that encourages social interaction, yet allows comfort, adaptability and inclusivity. The top three designs will be experienced through AR augmented reality). For the latest in home design, explore The District for the industry's latest products.

Running through the end of Feb. 24 are a total of 22 accredited seminars that touch on the latest trends, case studies and issues in interior design.The key themes this year are AI and decarbonization.

The splashy opening night party, open to all, catered to professionals for networking, amid nibbles of pizza and glasses of pinot grigio. Toronto painter Tatjana Hutinec found IDS "a great way to meet professionals in design to help promote my work." Others not directly in the business, however, chose to stay home. A realtor cited the limited free food and drink as not enough to justify the $67-and up ticket price. And the -12C chill didn't help.

Those who braved the cold were rewarded a showcase of more than 220 vendors spanning the size of three football fields. It was a great idea to have Big Smoke Brass, serenading partygoers as they marched up and down the aisles until they took to the centre stage to warm up the crowd before the dance party. guests dressed in their finery, with black leather pants common as they are every year.

Toronto's Anatolia sponsored the opening night. To be fair, their array of Turkish-influenced mosaic tiles caught the eye, as explained by lead designer Basak Duman:

Vendors competed for eyeballs, and what better way than to invite a celeb chef Mark McEwen who prepared some delish salmon poke for Signature Design Suite:

The unusual and innovative also capture attention, such as wood-inspired weightlifting room by SDI Design:

 

Then there are Inspira's showers and tubs (top picture). The Montreal company can print high-res images onto shower walls and doors and bathtubs. Choose an image from their extensive catalogue or supply them one. You could be bathing with Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie.

film review: Russians at War

 

Directed by Anastasia Trofimova

Written by  Anastasia Trofimova & Roland Schlimme

ChinoKino review: A

Reviewed by Allan Tong

 

First of all, Russians at War is an anti-war documentary, not propaganda.  

For 129 minutes, this film depicts a squad of Russian front line soldiers and medics who are demoralized by their country's war against Ukraine. The soldiers, ranging from their early-twenties into their fifties, see no point to the fighting, are given few or no orders when entering battle, drink constantly, and distrust Russian state media and their leaders. Some just want to collect a paycheque. Others want to go home. 

Malaise overhangs the film. One soldier complains that he and his comrades are being sent into battle with no information like "blind kittens." Another points to the old U.S.S.R. hammer-and-sickle insignia in his tank. (This means the tank was manufactured over 33 years ago.) Yet another points to a Russian newspaper and TV broadcast and urges the camera not to believe either. A 50-year-old soldier risks prison by leaving the front line to see his wife and children in Moscow. A widow stands over the grave of her loved one and openly questions the war.

 

In one scene, Russian soldiers are packed into a truck heading somewhere into battle, and a few are chugging from an open bottle. It recalls news footage from 1968 when U.S. soldiers smoked pot as they combed the jungles of Vietnam. Both groups of soldiers didn't know what they were fighting for. The difference is that U.S. networks broadcast their soldiers' sentiments every night which soured American opinion and helped end that unjust war. The Russian war lacks this uncensored footage. Russians at War offers a rare glimpse of the Russian front lines as they are, which makes this film essential viewing.

These are the facts: Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and continues to ravage that country in an unjust war. Secondly, the word "war" is uttered many times in this film, which is a punishable offence  in Putin's Russia. For this reason alone, there's no way Russians at War can screen in the country where its subjects live. To call this documentary propaganda is to be deaf and blind.

Director Anastasia Trofimova was reporting for the CBC when Russian invaded Ukraine. Benefiting from the chaos at the front and the endemic confusion that paralyzes the Russian army, she embedded herself with a squad. During her Q&A after the second screening at the TIFF Lightbox last Tuesday, Trofimova explained that she hid in the woods whenever commanding officers inspected, and when she was caught they chewed her out. She never obtained official press credentials in her seven months of shooting and, as the footage shows, risked her life to capture it.

The documentary is shown largely in a fly-on-the-wall, verite style. The director inserts a voice-over here and there purely to add context. At times, she questions a soldier. She asks one whether he believes Russian soldiers are committing atrocities. He denies it. This same young soldier is gung-ho about killing Nazis in Ukraine. It's clear to the audience that he has swallowed Vladimir Putin's brainwashing. Another soldier turns militant after seeing footage of a wounded comrade begging for a drone not to kill him, but it shoots him anyway. Does this scene engender sympathy for the dead Russian soldier? Yes. Does either scene compel me to cheer Russia and vilify Ukraine? No.

"Hundreds of instances over verbal abuse" including threats of violence and sexual abuse against TIFF staff forced the festival to postpone screenings. Those were originally scheduled to take place at a 14-screen multiplex at the height of the fest, TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey explained at a somber introduction before the Tuesday screenings. These took place at the TIFF Lightbox, a building far easier to secure. Indeed, there were many police and security guards on hand, stretching from the sidewalk on King Street where an angry protest raged, to the stage of cinema 2. In an unprecedented move, Russians at War was shown as the last screening of the venerable festival, two days after it ended.

How did we we come to this?

festival spotlight on IncluCity

 

The Italians do it in style, and that extends to their film festivals. At least in Toronto.

The ICFF, once the Italian Contemporary and since morphed into the multicult IncluCity, has weathered the ice age of Covid and the onslaught of Neflix and other streamers to survive and perhaps thrive. Unlike many fests, IncluCity doesn't chase world or even city premieres, but focuses on experiential programming. In plain language, this means giving audiences a good time watching movies, specifically on big, cushy sofas out in the open, under the stars as they nurse a Moretti or Campari-infused negroni and a chocolate. 

An example of sponsorship branding

The brand names are key, since IncluCity has managed to attract a range of sponsors to pay for filling the main street and a square inside the historic Distillery District of Toronto. Forget speakers. How it works is ticket-holders listen to a movie through headphones. The picture is surprisingly sharp, the sound clear and the sofas comfy. When it rains, the screenings move indoors.

A ticket runs $35-60 and includes a sample of pasta you can eat on the spot, plus a box of dry pasta from sponsor Barilla, a negroni or beer, a chocolate from Bari and a coffee from Lavazza. A ticket can include a sample from one of the Distillery shops, like a bar of orange and cinnamon-scented soap from Gentil Uomo one night. The price will be too high for some, reasonable to others. Also factor getting here, either by car, bus (not subway), bike or walk. (I bike.) All in all, this is the most satisfying way to watch a movie outside a 3D IMAX and perfect on a summer's night.

Movies run the gamut, from drama to comedy and kids, from good to meh, and released sometime in the past year. As mentioned, these are not premieres, so the screenings offer audiences a fun way to catch a flick they missed. As a bonus, the film's directors and stars introduce each film either in person, like Atom Egoyan, or by video.

 

An example of good is Weekend Heroes, a light German drama about a father who takes his autistic son to football (soccer) games around Germany so he can settle on a team to cheer. The father is at times too nice and the son at times is a little tyrant. Well, that's the point: teach the audience about autistic behaviour, though the movie begs the question, Are parents nurturing such kids or feeding their dysfunction? The performance by the actor playing the autistic son, Cecilio Andresen, is superb.

 

Another fine film was shown at the smaller Moretti Theatre, Il padre d’Italia and introduced by diretor-writer in person, Fabia Mollo. Mollo spoke on a panel with other filmmakers about adaptatig novels to films. The translation of his 2017 film is The Father of Italia, not the country, but a baby. That baby is carried by a carefree, but reckless young woman who sings in a band. She hooks up a gay mensch and they make an unlikely duo, searching for the baby's father in this road movie. The strong performances by the leads, particularly Isabella Ragonese, and a good script make this two-hander worth watching. The film has heart without lapsing into corniness, though the ending felt a little unresolved.

Tips for viewing: True, there's some audio bleed through your headphones from the surrounding patios if you sit at the edge of the smaller stage. Better is the larger Trinity Theatre, because the neighbouring shops are closed during screenings and the sightlines are good.

IncluCity offers programming beyond movies, including a wine tasting, and concludes July 26 with a gala honouring Isabella Rossellini. The latter is a pricey but lavish affair including an Italian dinner, which has been delicious in past years.

 

Completely free is a small, but fascinating exhibition of legendary director, Federico Fellini. On display in the box office mere steps from the Trinity Theatre screen are scripts, drawings, director chairs and even the great man's desk. IncluCity organizer, Dominic Sciullo, is displaying a sample of the collection that he's finding a home for. I certainly wish him well and would love to see more.

IncluCity (officially Lavazza IncluCity Festival) runs through July 26 in the Distillery and surrounding venues.

CD review: Good Day Good Night by David Deacon

Local blues veteran, David Deacon, unveiled his latest album at the fabled Rivoli Toronto last week. He previewed a handful of songs from Good Day Good Night, his fifth studio album and second this year, in a showcase lasting about 30 minutes. Deacon's gravelly, deep voice (think later Leonard Cohen or Tom Waits) was joined by vocalist Renee Rowe and guitarist Andy Ryan, who also co-wrote four songs off the new album. Both did admirable jobs accompanying Deacon on blues, rock and even reggae-tinged numbers such as Little More Light and Moments of Joy.

Deacon's vocal delivery is more spoken than sung, but that suits the material and the styles of the new album. This vocal approach goes for both his live performance as well as recorded album. Overall at the Rivoli, Deacon and his mates delivered an enjoyable performance of original numbers, though performed to a pre-recorded drums and bass track. I would've performed a full live band. The live songs themselves were more rock than traditional blues, reflecting the material on Good Day Good Night. 

The album features seven original compositions plus a cover of Bob Dylan's Knockin' On Heaven's Door (dedicated to the people of Ukraine). Stand-outs include the gospel-flavoured And They All Sang  and Along The Penthouse Electric Attic Blues, a gritty Chicago blues featuring a fine harmonica, but the song mysteriously fades out just when it begins to cook. Another misstep is the intrusive spoken introduction to Knockin' On Heaven's Door.

Polaris Prize unveils 40 nominees from Feist to Aysanabee

Story and photos by Allan Tong

The Polaris Prize, honouring Canada's best recorded music, announced this year's long list of 40 nominees last Tuesday evening. Sonic Boom, Toronto biggest record store, played host. Feist, Jessie Reyez, The Sadies and Murray Lightburn (of the Dears) made the list along with newcomers Eliza Niemi and Zoon. The full list:

ALL HANDS_MAKE LIGHT – Darling The Dawn

Alvvays – Blue Rev

Aquakultre – Don’t Trip

Aysanabee – Watin

Badge Époque Ensemble – Clouds Of Joy

Begonia – Powder Blue

Bibi Club – Le soleil et la mer

BIG|BRAVE – nature morte

Philippe Brach – Les gens qu’on aime

Mariel Buckley – Everywhere I Used To Be

Daniel Caesar – Never Enough

Chiiild – Better Luck In The Next Life

Feist – Multitudes

Debby Friday – Good Luck

Gayance – Mascarade

Ghostkeeper – Multidimensional Culture

Home Front – Games of Power

JayWood – Slingshot

Khotin – Release Spirit

Thierry Larose – Sprint!

Murray Lightburn – Once Upon A Time In Montreal

Isabella Lovestory – Amor Hardcore

Dan Mangan – Being Somewhere

N NAO – L’eau et les rêves

Tami Neilson – Kingmaker

Eliza Niemi – Staying Mellow Blows

Nico Paulo – Nico Paulo

Planet Giza – Ready When You Are

poolblood – mole

Jessie Reyez – Yessie

The Sadies – Colder Streams

Jairus Sharif – Water & Tools

Andy Shauf – Norm

Dylan Sinclair – No Longer In The Suburbs

Snotty Nose Rez Kids – I’m Good, HBU?

Alexandra Stréliski – Néo-Romance

U.S. Girls – Bless This Mess

Witch Prophet – Gateway Experience

Yoo Doo Right – A Murmur, Boundless to the East

Zoon – Bekka Ma’iingan

Nominee Aysanabee answered 10 questions:

1) Where are you from?

A lot of places. Sandy Lake First Nation [Ontario] till I was four, then I lived in every northern town from Winnipeg to Thunder Bay, but now I'm based in Toronto.

2) Favourite musician?

Teeks, a Maori artist from New Zealand.

3) The first record that changed your life?

A Bob Marley greatest hits album on CD.

4) Do you collect vinyl?

I just started to. I recently got a vinyl player. I only have four records now.

5) What are you listening to now?

The Digging Roots album. ShoShana Kish, who founded the label I'm on, along with Amanda Rheume ignited this whole musicial journey for me.

6) What living musician would you love to collaborate on?

Oh, that's a toughie...I'm really in love with Nemesis' music right now.

7) And a musician who's no longer with us?

I'd like to see what me and Bob Marley can do.

8) What comic book superhero would you like to be?

I have a ton of comics that my grandfather gave me. I always loved the Batman comics.

9) Do you see yourself as a particular animal?

Definitely a bird, because I love to fly.

10) Where would you eventually love to settle?

Either in a rustic cabin in the mountains of the west, or I come into some money and start a recording studio and hostel in Thailand. I'd have a little stage where they'd be mandatory listening parties for a crochety, old me AYSANABEE walks out and plays his new song, then goes back to the studio.

The Polaris will announce their short list on July 13, then hosts the Polaris Gala on September 19 at Massey Hall. October 19 sees the Heritage Prize awarded to a Canadian album recorded before the Polaris began in 2006. Details of all events are found at https://polarismusicprize.ca/

IncluCity fest returns to Toronto, bigger than ever

 by Allan Tong

The ICFF is back, or shall I say the Lavazza IncluCity Festival, organized by the ICFF? Once Toronto's Italian film fest, IncluCity has rebranded in recent years into a multicultural (and multi-disciplinarian) visual arts festival. The core remains Italian films, but IncluCity has expanded its tent to include even Jewish and Chinese cinema, not to mention painting, opera, fashion and this year horror films. All in all, IncluCity will screen more than 50 feature films drawn from 26 countries.

From June 27 to July 22, the center of IncluCity will be the Distillery District with screenings taking place in oversize, plush seats beneath the stars (rain or shine) on this historic district's cobblestone avenue. It is, without a doubt, the most gorgeous setting to watch a film. 

There's a lot to unpack with IncluCity 2023, and here are the highlights:

The Artist Project returns to Toronto

Ross Bonfanti's Concreatures

 

 

Story & photos by Allan Tong

 

The Artist Project returned to Toronto's CNE Grounds at the Better Living Centre after a long pandemic hiatus. The show, which runs through Sunday, April 16, is a buffet of visual arts mostly paintings, but this year adding a welcome twist of mixed media and even a fashion show. Thursday saw the traditional opening night party, complete with food and drinks for sale. The party is always fun, allowing visitors to wander the hundreds of art booths with a wine or beer in hand, but there was less of both in previous years (though normal in this post-Covid world given the labour shortage.) Still, the addition of mixed media was a smart addition that I hope continues in future editions. Some art that caught our eye:

 

 

Ryan Bock's Ode To Duchamp

 Shawn Alex Thompson

Gina D'Aloisio's Deep Breaths

Phil Carriere

Options were mostly mediocre junk food, but there was a decent booth offering salads and charcuterie hidden in a corner, unfortunately, that impressed a local chef.

Kelly McCray's Tower of Banned Books

Ross Bonfanti's Concreatures

Ross Bonfanti's Concreatures

IDS returns to Toronto with a bash

Christina Sideris

Toronto's Interior Design Show returns to January's cultural calendars after a hiatus (for obvious reasons) and following last year's IDS taking place in April right after lockdown. It felt great for IDS to be back, launching last night with their traditional opening party and running through Sunday, January 22 in the Metro Toronto Convention Centre's south building. Yesterday, saw the start of trade days full of speakers waxing about all things beautiful yet functional in the home. Though home sales are slumping, Canadians will continue to renovate their houses, condos and apartments, so the industry outlook is positive for 2023.

Thursday's opening soiree saw some booth, such as Miele's, pouring wine and champagne to invite visitors to inspect kitchen spaces, living rooms sets and luxury showers. There were at least three food stations scattered throughout the hockey-arena-sized space. The most popular offered vegetarian Chinese noodles (it's the Year of the Rabbit on Sunday), though another supplied just chips. There was more food in previous years, some noted, though the crowds of the chicly dressed and fashionably groomed adored the atmosphere, particularly around the Caesarstone stage where a DJ spun beats.

Trade Days continue today (Friday) at 4:30 pm with a keynote at the Caesarstone stage about designing the new Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, featuring Jordan Bennett, Shirley Blumberg of KPMB, Omar Gandhi of Omar Gandhi Architect in a conversation moderated by Elizabeth Pagliacolo of AZURE Magazine.

Saturday from 11:00 am to noon sees Mexican designer Fernando Laposse focus on global warming and the loss of biodiversity. He will explain how to use materials like corn leaves and loofah to build more sustainable spaces. Other panels took place throughoput the weekend, including speakers Kelly Reynolds and Chad Falkenberg from Falken Reynolds of Vancouver), Daej Hamilton of Toronto's Daej Designs, Toronto) and Treana Peake Founder of OBAKKI who will also speak about sustainability.

Tickets are available from $19-25 here. A reminder that IDS takes place in the *south* building of MTCC.

 

 

 

EQ3

Guild Design Gallery

Miele

 

 

Puppy Stools (yes, dogs) by Hojeong Ji

Rubi

 

Seedlip: not everything poured last night was alcohol

Welcome back!