Cities of the Future is the name of an art exhibit opening this weekend at the Canary District Presentation Gallery. Starting at noon on Saturday, the public is invited to take in a pair of exhibits that celebrate the cities we love, and the sometimes vertiginous experiences we have in them. 

Tom Ryaboi, better known on UrbanToronto through his handle tomms, has become a world-renowned photographers in the years since he was first posting his rooftopping exploits on our forum and through other Toronto social media outlets. Tom's mostly clandestine sky-scraping activities have now taken him across the globe, and gorgeous prints of several of his stunning cityscapes have now been collected for those of us with a taste for the vertical to enjoy.

Viewers check out Tom Ryaboi's vertiginous images at a preview opening, image by Craig White

Shots of Tom's from Toronto, Milan, Chicago, and Hong Kong are featured at the Canary District location until October 30th. The exhibit can be viewed during normal opening hours of the Presentation Gallery, namely Saturday and Sunday from 12 Noon until 5 PM, and Monday through Thursday from 12 Noon to 8 PM.

Riding Aletide, an interactive swing with vertiginous qualities, image by Craig White

Paired with Tom's photography is another vertigo-inducing work named Aletide. That's not a surging wave of beer, the word is pronounced Al-eh-ti-day, and refers to an ancient Athenian celebration giving thanks for surviving a plague where children first swung from trees, leading to an ecstatic state. In our context, Aletide is an interactive installation that ties together a swing with oscillating visuals and a soundtrack to trigger responses akin to our first experiences on a park swing. Here the feeling is more like soaring over a concrete and glass canyon.

Ilaria Vergani Bassi, Fabio Giampietro, Paolo Di Giacomo, and Michelle Ackerman, image by Craig White

Aletide comes to us from Milan, Italy where it was first exhibited last year. Created by visual artist and interaction designer Ilaria Vergani Bassi, artist and painter Fabio Giampietro, and creative developer Paolo Di Giacomo—all of whom are pictured above with Michelle Ackerman of the Kilmer Group—the trio worked with composer Alessandro Branca to create a work where the observer is a key part of the art, shaping its visuals and sounds through the movement they bring to it. 

Riding Aletide, an interactive swing with vertiginous qualities, image by Arthur Mola

If you want to get your swing on and become part of the installation, Aletide is only around until October 23 at the Canary District Presentation Gallery. The space is located at 398 Front Street East, which is on the northeast corner of Front and Cherry Streets, and at the gateway to the Canary District. To get to it you must come in along Front Street from Trinity Street or further west. Tom Ryaboi's photos will be on display until October 30.

Want to know more about the Canary District's offerings, including the new parks, buildings for the Pan Am and Parapan Am Games, and the condominiums? Check out one or more of our dataBase files below. Want to talk about the developments? Choose one of the associated Forum threads to get in on the conversation. Want to talk about this art exhibit? Leave a comment in the space provided on this page.

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